Demon Love
by MasterJester
Summary: This is my first try so well you know. Someone is after Naruto and the Kyuubi but this seems to be wrapped around something more. Friends and foes are forced to team-up, old paths cross and memories come back, two ancient worlds begin to collide. Yea, NOW I start to do it right.: uubi. No harem!
1. The Beginning of the End

**A/N: **Okay this is the newly remade version that took me a few hours to try and fix when I could. This is a must note to people who noticed and spoke up: this takes place awhile after Pain attacked the village, so most of the kids are between 17 and 20. Naruto has never had the memory of using the Kyuubi's power in this one but he had used it before. Also this is only a fan fiction, think of it as a movie. In short IT IS JUST A STORY PEOPLE. Now shall we begin…

The Beginning of the End

Sunlight lanced through the trees coated in the morning dew and the sounds of animals playing could be heard as Naruto Uzumaki walked through the forest. "Well it sure is peaceful. Too bad I have to waste it searching the damn woods for a lost pet." Naruto came across a pond and stopped to rest and drink. The water was cool and refreshing. He splashed some on his face.

He looked at his reflection and liked what he saw. Slightly messy yellow hair like his father, Minato and sea-blue eyes showing fiery determination, along with the markings on his face from having the Kyuubi sealed inside him. He stood and his mirrored twin did the same. Naruto never noticed but he had grown a bit since the last time he checked. But the one thing that never changed was the Day-Glo orange clothing he always wore. _Not bad at all. _He thought.

He started walking when a noise caught his attention. Swift reflexes from years of training went into motion as he had a kunai in his hand, ready to fight. "Hold on. It's just us." A voice called out from the trees and two figures appeared from the shadows. It was Kakashi Hatake and Sakura Haruno. Kakashi was his gloomy-like boring self as usual, wearing his uniform and looking like he was about to fall asleep. Sakura wore her everyday outfit, a red sleeveless shirt and white shorts, and from the look of it she wasn't in a very happy mood as she came up and struck Naruto square in the face and making him fall into the pond.

Naruto broke the surface, spitting out water. "What the hell was that for?!" He yelled. "For all the time me and Kakashi-sensei wasted trying to find you, you idiot!" She exclaimed. "We have been looking all morning for you just to find you checking yourself out. I've got have a mind to beat the stupid right out of you." "Easy Sakura, I think he gets it." Kakashi said. He stepped forward and pulled Naruto out. "Okay, at the risk of getting hit in the face again, why are you looking for me?" Naruto asked using his chakra to try and blow the water off him.

"We were trying to find you so we could tell you that the mission is done. We found the cat and returned it to its owner." Kakashi said. "Also, the Hokage has a new mission for us to take on." _God, I hope it isn't another D-ranked one._ Naruto thought.

(Fifteen minutes later)

The three of them were in the Hokage's office; standing across from them was Tsunade, one of the three Sonnin and current Hokage of Konoha. With long golden yellow hair, size-G breasts and enough power in her right hook to level a building, Tsunade is as lethal as she is drop-dead sexy. "Alright, two hours ago I sent out scouts on their daily check of the perimeter and they found something interesting. One has seen two figures that match the descriptions of rogue ninjas Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki. I want to know what it is that they are doing here and why." She said. "Yes ma'am." They said in unison.

They turned to leave when Kakashi stopped. "Something's on your mind, isn't it?" He asked. Naruto and Sakura stopped, interested in hearing what their sensei had to say. Tsunade sighed, "It shows that badly?" She said. "Only to those who pay attention, and when you know what to look out for, it helps. What's wrong?" Tsunade stood from her seat and stared out the window. "It's just…we haven't seen these two ninjas in particular for a while and out of nowhere, they just appear. They've seen and followed for the past hour and so far they haven't done any harm. It's been on my mind since I heard they were sighted. That's not the only matter, how is it that two seasoned fighters get seen by rookie scouts in the first place? Something's just not right, and it worries me."

Nobody moved or said anything for a bit, and then Naruto spoke. "I understand Grandma Tsunade. I know what it's like not to know what's going to happen or what's going on right now. And to make it worse you're the Hokage, you have the great responsibility to the people who live here. You have the right to worry. But that's why people like us, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura and me, are around. No matter what it is, a friend, an enemy, we all have things like this on our minds but in the end, we have to see what it is and face it. So you shouldn't worry, whatever happens we can take it. Believe it!" Tsunade smiled. "Thank you Naruto. I needed that. Now, go and see why it is they are here."

The gang left and Sakura smiled. "_I_ can't believe it. That is probably the most sense you have ever made while talking like an idiot. And," She said jumping in front of Naruto. Naruto braced himself for another punch instead Sakura hugged him. Naruto blinked, still waiting to get leveled. "It's definitely the nicest thing I've ever heard you say to anyone." She stepped back. And then hit him in the arm. "Ow!" Naruto said rubbing his sore. "But it would have been nicer if you left out calling her "Grandma"!" Sakura said smugly. Kakashi chuckled, "Alright you two, let's get to work."

(Out in the forest)

"Alright Itachi, how long do we have to keep pretending that there's no one following us? Those runts are getting on my nerves." Kisame said angrily. "Easy, my comrade, only long enough to find what we're looking for. When we do, then you can have your fun. Until then…we don't harm anyone or anything. " Itachi replied. Kisame sighed, "Okay, have it your way. I'll play nice, for now. But when we're done with this job you owe me."

**A/N: **Right, well from my point of view I say that's not bad. But hey, I'm the one writing it. It's up to you guys, the readers, to see it its worthy or not. Reviews!


	2. Ambush!

**A/N: Okay same deal. In this this one there's going to be some decent fight scenes and a small plot twist. See if you can tell what it is. Reviews!**

Ambush!

(Two hours later)

Naruto and the others had been scouting the forest around Konoha, jumping at every broken stick or moving leaf. Sakura and Kakashi had been running around the southern and eastern area while Naruto was checking out the northern area. "This is Sakura sighing in. So far it's been quiet on my end. What about you Naruto, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura said into her communicator.

Kakashi was running through some trees and stopped. "There's nothing in the south. It's all quiet." He replied. "Naruto, what about you, have you got anything?"

Naruto was near a meadow far north of the village, sitting on a rock and keeping watch. "Nothing interesting to tell from my spot so I'm going to move. I'll head towards the western area and start searching from there." He stood and ran through the field. _Jeez, I don't get it. Why bother to come at all? And then not do anything but run in a circle. What's their game?_ Naruto thought. He was so deep in his thoughts that he almost missed a shadow flash by a nearby tree.

His eyes just caught the movement when another one came from behind. A large shot of water came rushing at him but he managed to evade it at the last second. As he landed another water shot came at him. He jumped and ran as they kept coming, not giving Naruto a chance to retaliate. "Okay, that's enough!" He yelled out and threw down a smoke bomb as he landed again. As fast as he could, he made some hand signs. **"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"** He yelled and five Narutos appeared, charging out through the smoke to try and confuse who was attacking him.

Before any of them could get far, ten kunai each were thrown at them and they all disappeared in a wisp of smoke. For a moment all was silent and then a figure came from the trees. Kisame looked around for Naruto. "Argh…where did he go, I was starting to have fun." He growled in anger and swung his sword at a tree, tearing it in two. "He must have run away during the smokescreen while I was busy with the clones. I got to hurry up." He said. With that he ran off in one direction in frenzy.

A few moments passed and then a nearby rock suddenly transformed into Naruto. "Whew, that was close. I thought he almost had me there. I can't believe that shark-face actually fell for that old trick." He said to himself. He tried to hail the others, only to find that his communicator was broken. _Shit! It must have broken when I was dodging the water._ He thought. "I have to get to Sakura and Kakashi-sensei before either of those two does!" He said. He turned and started running in the general direction his teammates were, hoping to get there in time.

(With Sakura)

"Oh, what's wrong with this thing?! I can't reach Naruto!" Sakura said. She was waiting up in a tree, patiently for Kakashi-sensei to meet her. She kept trying to get Naruto but to no avail. _He probably just broke it messing around like always. _Sakura thought. Kakashi showed up near a large boulder with moss coming towards her. "Finally," She said, standing up and stretching her tired limbs. "I thought you were going to be late like you always are for a lesson." Kakashi said nothing as he approached her. _Hmm, that's strange. _She thought. She jumped down to greet her teacher. Sakura came up to Kakashi, "Alright, so for I have seen no sign of the two rogues, nor have I heard anything out of the ordinary." She reported. Kakashi nodded and then stopped, turning his head to the trees behind Sakura. "What is it?" She asked. Preparing herself for an attack she took out a kunai and turned to the woods that surrounded them.

Right then she had a disturbing feeling and looked to Kakashi to see a fist connect to her head, knocking her out cold. Kakashi caught her as she fell and placed her at the base of a tree. Then a puff of smoke covered him and where Kakashi was, Itachi now stood. _One down, two to go. _He thought and disappeared.

Kakashi was heading to Sakura as fast as he could when he ran into Naruto on the way. "Naruto, are you okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine, just tired. I ran into Kisame on my way to the next area. Somehow I got away and I've been running like hell to find you guys before they did." Naruto panted.

They leaped from tree to tree at full speed while trying to watch out for the rogue ninjas and Sakura. Some time had passed before they managed to locate their fallen comrade. Kakashi placed two fingers to her neck and sighed in relief. "She's okay, just unconscious. We should-" He began when Sakura's eyes opened and swung her fist at Kakashi. He dodged it and jumped on a branch. "Sakura, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Naruto said. Sakura didn't say anything as she glared at Kakashi with a fierce hatred. "Tell me something, Kakashi-sensei. Tell me something only the three of us would know." She blurted out.

Kakashi turned his head to the side with confusion, but said nothing. They stared at one another for a while when Kakashi jumped down. He landed near Sakura and slowly walked over to her. Sakura kept her guard up when Kakashi got close and bent over to whisper something in her ear. The look on her face changed from malice to relief. Kakashi leaned back, "Are we good?" He asked. Sakura nodded.

Naruto came up to them. "What is it? What did you say?" He said. Kakashi turned to Naruto with a grim look in his eye. "That's not important. What is important is finding the two ninjas and finding out why they are here."

They all told each other's story about their findings. "Alright, let's assume that we know why they are here. Why go through all this trouble of walking aimlessly around the woods for hours on end only to attack one person and knock out the other? It makes no sense." Sakura said.

"I don't get it either, but the best plan for now, is to wait. Given time, they will come to us." Kakashi said. Naruto and Sakura nodded in agreement and so they waited for the outlaws to find them.

(Thirty minutes later)

Two shadows began moving of their own accord and came into view. Itachi and Kisame walked towards the others. Naruto, who was lying on a large branch, was now ready to fight. Kakashi and Sakura stepped away from the tree where Naruto was, Kakashi's hand reaching for his headband while Sakura was preparing herself by flowing chakra through her body.

"It seems that they have been expecting us. Itachi, can I deal with them now?" Kisame said. Itachi sighed. "Very well, tend to the other two, but make sure not to…unintentionally harm Naruto." Kisame smiled revealing all of his pointed teeth. Kisame drew his sword and laughed. Kakashi stepped forward. "Wait! If you're really so focused on fighting us, at least tell us why!" All eyes were on Itachi who kept silent, his eyes closed. He opened his eyes and stared Kakashi in the eye. "We are here as bounty hunters on a job to capture Naruto and take him with us. That's all you need to know." He said.

Kisame charged and swung like a madman, his sword aimed for Sakura. She jumped away and Kisame's sword struck the ground with great force, causing dirt to go everywhere. _To hell with this! _Kakashi thought. He moved away and pushed his headband up, revealing his Sharingan. He vanished in an instant and reappeared behind Kisame, a kunai on hand.

He aimed for Kisame's neck but missed as Kisame ducked and swung his sword at Kakashi's legs. He jumped over Kisame's head and threw a kunai as he landed and stepped away. Kisame deflected it and laughed. "Is this the best you can do? A child could do better!" He boasted. "Then let's test that theory." Sakura said. She made some hand signs. "**Illusion Release!"** She called. Several bushes and shrubs disappeared, showing other kunai with tags wrapped around the handles implanted into the ground. Itachi looked around curiously. "Hmm…what is all this?" He spoke.

"We setup a trap for when you guys got here." Sakura said. "The tags on these kunai are part of a new weapon prototype we had made for a special test run and we decided to try them against you two. The markings on the tags of the kunai placed in a general area can create a powerful water barrier by utilizing the oxygen in the area and combining it with hydrogen that five kunai have sealed in the tags are released into the air. The other five assist by using chakra sealed away to help create the barrier and reinforce it. Even when it has been turned on, the hydrogen gas is still being released inside. By using a second kunai with a stronger-than-normal paper bomb on a time lag after the barrier has been active, it buys time for us to ensure the enemy stays within the area. The beauty of it, the water is so thick that once the explosion happens, it becomes compressed by the barrier and grows stronger in power. In theory no one can escape from it, save for those who have this." Kakashi said holding a kunai with a gold band on it. "This one is special because it can negate the effects of the barrier when it gets close to it, and the effects leave the instant it moves away." Kakashi grabbed Naruto's arm and thrust the kunai into the water. A hole opened up and they flew out into the air and landed in time to see it close back up. They were out of the blast range while Itachi tried to escape, only to be stopped by the powerful barrier.

He looked at Naruto with a strange light in his eyes then shut them; before a flash covered everything in the area with light then an explosion happened. The ground shook with such force, but the barrier held strong. When it was over the shield had vanished and the kunai were destroyed. But in the mists in the center was an enormous bubble of water. "No!" Naruto exclaimed. "The **Water Shield Justu**,Kisame must have been able to fuse the gases together just like the kunai." Kakashisaid.

The bubble burst sending water everywhere, hitting Kakashi and Sakura and knocking them down. Itachi with his eyes still closed, walked towards Naruto who was ready for whatever Itachi had planned. As Naruto was about to charge ahead, a large group of crows surrounded him so he couldn't run. Itachi ran through some hand signs and placed his hand on Naruto. **"Way of the Cursed Seal Jutsu."** He whispered. Itachi's hand began to glow with an eerie violet light and markings appeared on the back of his hand. All the while Naruto was in a daze and didn't react in the least. Itachi looked over at Kisame. "Hurry up! When I take my hand away from Naruto I'm going to need backup!" He hollered. Just as Kisame began to move, Sakura managed to stand up and attempted to stop him. She threw a chakra-filled punch at his head and missed as Kisame batted her aside. While in midair she threw a shuriken at Itachi causing him to take his hand away from Naruto. The moment he did the markings had disappeared from Itachi's hand and reappeared on Naruto's forehead.

Nothing happened for a moment, and then the earth started to tremble. The air grew heavy with some kind of pressure everyone could feel. The ground around Naruto's feet cracked and the trembling grew worse. Suddenly out of nowhere, a shockwave of chakra emitted from Naruto blowing everyone away. Dirt and rocks were blasted apart; trees were nearly uprooted from the ground. "What's going on, what the hell did you do to Naruto?!" Kakashi yelled over the destruction. The waves of energy stopped and everyone got a good look at Naruto. He had been transformed: his eyes were crimson-red and the pupils were silted. The whisker marks on his face were more profound. His teeth elongated into fangs and his hands, claws. A dark-red energy swirled around him with no warning and great force.

Naruto dug his hands into the ground and spun on the spot, sending more rocks flying into Kakashi and the others. They moved, jumped and dodged everything that came their way. _What the hell is going on with him? If someone doesn't do something soon, he'll tear up the entire forest!_ Kakashi thought. Then he stopped. Naruto had stopped, turned and ran away surprising everyone.

"Where is he going?" Sakura said. She went to go after him but was stopped by a motion from Kakashi. "Wait, in the current state you're in and with Naruto like that, you could get fatally wounded. First things first," He said turning towards Itachi and Kisame. "It's time you talked. What did you do to Naruto? Why are you really here?"

Itachi and Kisame looked at each other. Itachi was the first to speak. "If you'll let us explain, we will tell you because now it concerns you. But first we must find and capture Naruto. I don't care if you trust me or not, but you will listen to me when I say now the entire world is at stake, and that boy is its only savior."

**A/N:** **I put more detail into some parts that needed it and for those who only bother to read ones that are 1k to 2k, here you go. To anyone who would like to point anything out that I may have missed that could be helpful, you know what to do. R&R!**


	3. The Kyuubi speaks

**A/N: so far, I hope that you have enjoyed the newly remade versions. At the very least they're longer :) Reviews!**

The Kyuubi Speaks

(Moments ago with Naruto)

Naruto couldn't believe his eyes when he saw that the explosion didn't work as the smoke cleared and a sphere of water had appeared in place of the two ninjas, keeping them from harm. "No!" He exclaimed. _How is it that didn't work? I should expect nothing less from an elite ninja. _Naruto thought. The sphere blew apart, hitting Sakura and Kakashi and knocking them down. Naruto managed just to dodge the oncoming water and pulled out a kunai, going to help his comrades.

He tried to run to them but was halted by a wave of crows, all flying around him like a cyclone of black feathers. He looked around for a way out instead he found himself face-to-face with Itachi. Itachi placed his hand on Naruto's forehead and whispered something he didn't catch. But when he did, Itachi's hand began to glow a pale violet. Naruto started to feel drowsy, to lose feeling in his body. His vision began to blur and he could barely stand. He looked up at Itachi. _What is he doing to me? I…I can barely move and I feel so tired… _He thought. Then he passed out.

When he awoke, he was on his back lying in some water. He looked around finding himself not in the forest anymore, but a large dank hallway. _Where am I? _He thought. He stood up and checked his surroundings. The hallway was slightly flooded, the water coming to his ankles. The walls covered in rust and dents. Further down it seemed endless as the darkness just kept going and Naruto could feel something in its depths: an old power, filled with malice and hatred. Seeing that he couldn't do anything just standing, he walked deeper into the shadows.

As he walked on he could feel an odd sensation that he had been here before. _This place seems so familiar to me. Why is that? _He kept wandering in, getting closer and closer to the center. After some time passed, he discovered the main chamber: a massive room with an enormous cage at the far end bearing a seal of sorts. He went to inspect it when he felt something stirring inside the cage. He cautiously walked over to the cage bars to get a closer look when he heard a voice, from inside. **"Who dares disturb my slumber?" **It spoke out.

Noise could be heard from behind the bars and Naruto jumped at the sudden motion of two giant blood red eyes with slits appearing from the darkness. "What are you?" Naruto asked with hesitation in his voice. **"It's you again. I see…" **The voice said. Naruto frowned and went forward with wonder. "Where am I? Who are you?" He asked this time with more force in his voice.

The voice chuckled, **"Easy young one. I am known as the Kyuubi, the nine-tailed fox demon. As for where you are, we are in your "mindscape". It's where two minds of separate entities meet." **

"My mindscape…so we're inside my head?" Naruto said. **"Yes. For many years I have been locked away behind these bars, hoping that the day of my release would come soon. But things don't normally come to pass as such. So I had made safety measures in case something like this happened." **

"What do you mean? What safety measures?" He said.

"**Answer me this: have there been times when you use your chakra that it seems too strong or too dark, to you and to others around you? That you can do feats unseen or seem to be impossible for others?" **The Kyuubi asked.

Naruto looked back on some of his fights when such things happened: the fight with Haku after his belief that Sasuke had died, one time in the Forest of Death during the exams, and several other cases that matched. He tried to look farther back but couldn't bring anything up. He looked at the Kyuubi with astonishment as he now knew the demon spoke the truth. "How do you know all this?" He demanded.

The Kyuubi smiled, showing many sharp teeth and laughed. **"I know all of these things because I am sealed within you, young one. You see, when the 4****th**** Hokage put me away he cut my chakra in half; one of said halves resides deep within you. In order to keep such power intact your chakra has naturally grown to be able to rival the amount sealed away. But in many battles you overuse your strength and begin to go into mine. That is why your power was so great whenever you tapped into the vastness of that chakra. You were using MY power in dire situations. However, I still got the last laugh. Before I was fully sealed away, I used the last of my own chakra to seal the other half with me while I was imprisoned." **

"Why did you do that?" Naruto asked. **"So that on the day I can be free again, I will still have power to get my revenge on those who stood against me all those years ago. You see, with the seal I placed the unused chakra will grow in quantity, so when I have need of it I will have massive reserves of energy to use as I see fit.**

"**However taking recent events into account, your earlier fight with the Uchiha boy and his partner, I've had to call you down here to show you the reason why they attacked you."**

The eyes moved to the side and Naruto could see in the darkness, a red glowing seal on the far end of the cage. He started walking towards it, stopped, and then looked at the eyes. "How do I know you won't try anything?" He said. The Kyuubi laughed and backed away even further.

He crept slowly towards the markings all the while keeping an eye on the demon. When he got close enough he inspected it. The seal had several small cracks running through what Naruto thought was the wall. He put his hand to it and to his discovery it was the seal that was really cracked. His eyes widened and he turned to the Kyuubi for confirmation. The red-eyed beast nodded its head. **"You see. That seal was put up so I would have my power returned to me upon my release. But because of the Uchiha, that plan has backfired severely. The justu he used, could you tell me what it was?" **

Naruto thought about it and threw his hands up in frustration. "No! I can't because I don't know myself. All I can tell is that he put his hand to my forehead and that it started to glow some kind of purple." He admitted.

The Kyuubi's eyes widened and then were shut for a moment. **"'Way of the Cursed Seal'…it's a special and rather cruel justu I have heard of that's been used very rarely. It is a technique used on all kinds of seals. Its effects normally depend on the type of seal it's used on. Since this is one kind that keeps some amount of chakra from the caster, the seal will slowly but surely deteriorate and then…"**

Naruto was getting anxious. "So what, you get your chakra back. What then? What happens next?" The Kyuubi bent low towards Naruto so they could see eye-to-eye. Naruto didn't move an inch as the beast face was only a breath away. **"It means that you must listen very carefully, young one. Due to the justu that was cast onto the seal, it will continue to break away whenever disturbed by any nearby chakra flows and uses, namely your own and the large amounts of mine within you. A time will come that when the seal breaks, the chakra that has been building up over the years will be unleashed, the power of its unsealing will set me free." **

Naruto startled but was cut off by a growl from a big set of teeth near his head. **"But that is not the worst of it. The main problem is when that much power is released at one time, it will destroy not only me, but you as well and everything around you. The fallout will be unlike anything you or anyone has ever seen in history. When it happens and with my level of chakra the way it is now the blast will annihilate everything within 22,500 miles; that's almost the entire continent." **

Naruto was silent. He looked at the cracked seal, and then looked back at the Kyuubi. "What do we do then?" He asked. ** "We must find a way to repair the seal. Fortunately, I still have outside resources that tell me everything I need to know about what is happening in the world. There is word that far up north there is something that can aid us in this troubled time: a sword that has the power to break and fix any known seal. We must find this sword, so we can fix the seal and keep both you and me alive." **

"Ok we have a way to fix it, but how do we get there without Itachi and Kisame catching us?" Naruto asked. **"There is a way: when you tap into my power you usually get much stronger. Now that you know better about where this power comes from, I will be able to let you use more of it for what I have in mind. This time when you do it you will enter a feral state of semi-consciousness where you are focused only on where we need to go. On top of that you will be able to run faster, hit harder and feel less pain than anyone. **

"**However, when you use this you will revert to your most primal instincts and attack anything and everything in your path and will not recognize friend from foe. Along with that the power will tax you greatly. By the time we are a quarter of the way there you will be tired, I guarantee it. Doing this also puts stress on the cracked seal, but I can dampen the effects and slow down the process. The only question is, with the concern of your friends as well as the world now being in danger, will you risk your life even at the chance of dying, to save others? Now that you know the situation, I won't blame you if you don't do it."**

Naruto pictured Sakura and Kakashi and their smiling faces (or at Sakura smiling and Kakashi laughing, 'cause no one ever sees his face). Seeing this and feeling the need to help them at any cost Naruto smiled. "Huh, if that's the case then there's no question. It's high time I got a real mission anyway and saving the world sounds more like my style. Let's get moving!" He said. The Kyuubi wasn't in the least by Naruto's response. _**Of course you would say something like that. Watching you over the years you have become so predictable to me. You're always willing to risk your own life for the sake of other people who hated you, some don't even know you and yet you still don't know when to stop. That may soon end your life someday. **_The Kyuubi thought. The demon smiled and stepped aside allowing Naruto to step out of the cage. **"Very well, now we will begin. To use my power to its extent you must first focus on your destination, then you dig very deep and try to use my chakra; it will feel different to yours, more heavy and unstable than you own. Once that's done, your body will act and react to anything in the real world while you keep a steady mind on where we're going from in here. Now let's get started!"**

Naruto took a deep breath and tried to use that demon's chakra, going as deep as he could into his own reserves until he found it, it was like wading through a sea of blood, it was so red. He went in deeper and began to see himself change in his mind's eye. His fingernails lengthened into claws and his teeth into fangs. His hair was more wild and the whisker markings on his face more visible. Along with that his eyes had changed from sea-blue to blood red just like the Kyuubi's. When he opened his eyes he checked his reflection in the water on the ground. "Whoa, this power…it's something else." He whispered. He stood and started to flow the Kyuubi's chakra through his entire body. That's when the Naruto on the outside had changed and fled, to find the last hope for the world.


	4. Stories are told

**A/N: I apologize for the wait; thinking up these next few chapters in advance is taxing. I hope everyone likes it and is still with me. **

Stories are told

Kakashi, Sakura, Itachi and Kisame were chasing after Naruto's general direction. Waves of tension could be felt from both parties as they called a truce until they caught up with the runaway blond. On the way they saw the destroyed terrain in Naruto's wake: small trees had been ripped free from the ground, boulders crushed to pebbles and dust. _Damn! I knew the Kyuubi's power was strong, but this is…_ Sakura thought. "I don't understand. I've seen Naruto use the demon fox's power. This doesn't seem like his kind of rampage; he's usually more all over the place than one point." Kakashi said. He looked to Itachi for an explanation. "Exactly what did you do to Naruto? Why are you doing this in the first place? Who hired you to get him and for what purpose? I know you said you would explain but I'm a little impatient."

Itachi stopped, causing everyone to stop. He said nothing as he thought about something. "It might make more sense with a tale of old. The story goes that a long time ago a great swordsman went to a blacksmith, an old man to have him make a sword unlike any other. When he got there the old man refused to make him the sword for he didn't have the materials needed to make it. The old man told the swordsman that in order to make the blade he needed metal not seen on this planet.

"The swordsman recalled that a star had fallen not two nights ago near the old man's home, so he decided to get it and have the old man make the sword with that. He went for a day and came back with a small meteorite, the same star that fell some time ago.

"The old man finally agreed to give the sword to the swordsman but told him to wait three days and nights, then come back to claim his prize.

"Three days and nights passed and the swordsman came to collect. The sword wasn't of traditional make; it was a broadsword with a shining silver blade and a golden handle that seemed to have strange markings.

"The old man told him what the marks were: special seals that when active, can seal and unseal any type of jutsu; to cut it would break the jutsu, and to stab it would repair it. And once the sword repairs any seal the user of the sword can use the same seal any time, without wasting chakra or the need of hand signs. Simply think of the seal you wish and use the sword."

"But what happened to the swordsman?" Sakura asked now curious. "The swordsman used it many times in many battles, but one day a thief came and took the sword, killing the swordsman in his sleep for good measure. It's been going all over the world since then. One day a wealthy man up in the Light Country named Goturo bought it off of a merchant who didn't know what he had. He however had heard of the stories and tried to use it to see if there was any truth to it. The sword had worked to an extent, but there seemed to be some sort of problem. What it is, he hasn't said. But apparently, when he heard of Naruto and his amazing feats, he hired us to find him and bring him." Kisame finished.

"I can follow with the bounty hunter business, but how does Naruto going demonic all over the place and then suddenly running fit in?" Sakura asked.

"We needed a reason to take him with us in case the idea of him coming with us willingly didn't swing. So I was forced to use the Way of the Cursed Seal technique, a rather old and strange technique that has a different effect on whatever seal it's used on. We had used the knowledge of said justu to use as a trump card. When this justu is used on a seal that is restricting something like the nine-tailed demon fox the seal will slowly but surely break and any disturbances surrounding the seal will only speed up the process. Eventually it will be gone and the beast will have been set free."

"Damn! Well, it worked as we can see. The question now is how long will it take for us to get to Naruto and then fix this." Kakashi said. "I'm going to bet that since you two had placed the justu on Naruto, the only reason that you would have is because this Goturo is able to fix it, am I right?"

"You are. Right now the only good thing out of this is that inexplicably, Naruto seems to be headed for the Light Country." Kisame said. The group looked to him as he stared into the trees and nothing else. He turned to the others and smiled. "The reason why is because the way to the Light Country is part land, and mostly water; we can catch him on the way."

Sakura was ballistic. "And you're telling us this JUST NOW!? Have you been thinking about that the whole time?" She said and started taking swings at him. While Kisame and Sakura were going at it Itachi and Kakashi were contemplating on the newly given information. "That's right, even at his current speed I doubt Naruto can beat us all the way there. But we have to hurry; we can't waste any more time standing here." Kakashi said. Itachi nodded in agreement.

Kakashi looked over at the two fighting. "Hey, if both of you are going to fight, then fight on the way. We have to move double time to catch up to Naruto before he reaches the water." Sakura and Kisame stopped on the spot, Sakura holding half a tree and Kisame about to take a swing with Samehada. Sakura leered at Kisame. "We'll finish this later, chum-for-brains." Kisame smiled evilly showing off his pearly whites. "I'm looking forward to it." And with that they rushed after Naruto at full speed, Itachi leading and Kakashi backing them. _I hope we can get to him in time. If they're right when we get to Goturo we had better be careful. A weapon like that can make anyone a powerful ally…or a very dangerous enemy._ He thought and ran faster.

(With Naruto)

Naruto was plowing through any and everything in his path. Trees were split in half, rocks were crushed like a boy stepping on an ant, and everything living either ran from him or was blown away by the speed he currently possessed. In the mindscape Naruto kept steadily building chakra ever so slowly, so as not to disturb the seal and end it for the both of them. He looked back at the Kyuubi with irritation on his face. "Hey, how long are we going to keep running like this? The speed boost is fucking amazing but it's really tiring me out just keeping this level of power focused on going in one direction. Are we even going the right way?" He complained.

The great beast chuckled, "**Easy there, young one. It will take some time to reach our first destination. We must first travel for two days until we reach water. At this rate it will still take some time to get halfway. You should be thankful you even have my power right now. It normally takes a week by your standards to get to the water.**"

"What water? I thought we just had to keep going north." He said. Kyuubi nodded its head. "**True, however there is only so far that we can go on foot. In order to get to the Light Country and then to this Goturo we, above all else, must cross a large part of the ocean that separates most of the other countries of the world and with the Light Country being one of the farthest up north to reach even with the fastest known ways of travel by human means, we have quite a journey ahead of us.**" The demon smiled strangely and an odd gleam shone in the redness of its eyes. "**That being said, we may as well enjoy each others' company, seeing as until nightfall you'll be stuck in here with me.**"

Naruto startled and almost broke his concentration on the demon's chakra. "WHAT!? What do you mean I'll be stuck with you until we get there!?" He yelled. Being near someone he didn't like for a while was something, but being stuck with someone who knows almost everything in your life and HELPING them was something he hadn't expected. The Kyuubi shifted its arms and laid its massive head on them, eyes still on Naruto. "**In order to keep this power contained properly there has to be something to channel it through your body safely and effectively, and since I'm in here,**" It said motioning the cage with its eyes. "**I can't do anything to help. The thing of it is that you have a base of raw power and if there is nothing to control it…in any case, you must remain here until we arrive. When the sun sets on this day I will take back control and hold back the seal's power for a bit while you rest, to slow its effects.**"

Naruto went back to "channeling" the demon's power. "I know that, I just wish I could help the others more. That I could do something other than lead them to some random place and hope they can follow. I never wanted anyone of my friends to be hurt or in danger after all that they have done for me and now, now nearly the whole freaking world is in trouble. I wish… " He said with a troubled look.The Kyuubi noticed the pain on Naruto's faceand stared at it for a while. _**All of this emotion is something I never understood. It was never necessary for me, a tailed beast of power to learn or understand the ways of the human world, save for how to blend in.**_ The Kyuubi thought. The fox started to slowly creep up to Naruto. Naruto was paying too much attention to notice until he turned when he thought it was too quiet.

He was about to break away from channeling the energy when it stopped just before the cage bars. **"Listen and listen well child, I will only say this once: while I do not know or understand your care for your companions, I do acknowledge it. You wish not to bring them harm, for them to be safe and sound? That is not a possibility. You can never keep someone from danger forever. However, what you can do for them is lessen the blow by dealing with this problem laid out before you and the world. I am not accustomed to doing this, but come sundown and only if you want to, I shall aid you and bestow onto you an ancient technique long since used in this time and age.**"

Naruto was speechless before the demon's statement. _A gigantic monster stands before me and its willing to help…the odds on this one happening, ah it hurts my head trying to wrap around it._ He thought. The Kyuubi growled and turned away. "**Don't get the wrong idea. I'm only doing this to increase the chance of my survival. The stronger you are, the better our chances are of getting to this man and his sword. I may have to live in this cage for the rest of your life but I will be alive. That is all that matters.**"

Naruto pondered this for a moment considering the boost in strength and power he had now obtained was helpful so far, it made things interesting to see what else the Kyuubi knew. "Alright, I'll do it! Any kind of help you're willing to give, I'll take." The Kyuubi closed its eyes and smiled. "**I thought you would say that. I'm going to rest for a bit, wake me when dusk approaches.**" Naruto started something about when that was and how he was going to be able to tell when that happened, but the Kyuubi was drifting of too quickly to pay attention to him._** You have grown much and surpassed many who wished to stand in your way, no matter what it was or who it is you have always done your best and never backed down from the thought of pain or death if it was to save someone who was precious to you…hmm, I guess this is the emotion humans call pride.**_ The Kyuubi thought. Then the beast smirked. _**Of course, half of the troubles this boy had gotten out of were thanks to my power. So it shouldn't be surprising to say that he has gotten stronger. The question is, is he strong enough to learn from the likes of me?**_

(Five hours and twenty minutes later)

Near the point of sunset Naruto continued running through various dips and rises of the landscape until a full blown canyon surrounded his sights. Giant figures of rock and stone were jutting out from the ground in all sorts of forms. By this time he had been released by the demon's hold to save what energy he had left. But Naruto wasn't paying attention to the area, or that he had been freed; after hours of almost nonstop running the only thing he was focused on was his stomach.

"Ah, so hungry…and so far there hasn't been anything around that I can eat." He said bent over holding his growling belly. The Kyuubi growled. "_**Quit your whining! It's almost sundown.**__**You should find a place to rest safely until morning**_"**.**

A few minutes of searching lead Naruto to the discovery of a large cave with some small brushwork near the entrance. He went inside to inspect it and found nothing out of the ordinary. "This place should fine for now." He said to himself. "_Alright, now what do I do?" _He thought. "_**Sit in meditation. I will summon you to me.**_" The Kyuubi replied.

Naruto did as he was told, going over to one side of the cave and sat cross-legged and placing his palms on his knees. "_**Now close your eyes and concentrate on my voice…**_" He closed his eyes and listened carefully. Within moments he was back in the mindscape with the demon fox again. The beast smiled mischievously. "**Welcome back, young one.**" It said. Naruto frowned, "You know very well why I'm here. So let's get started." The smile grew wider.

"**Very well, mind you that this will take up much time and focus on your part. It will tax you of your strength and take you to the edge of your abilities. You will undergo many changes on this trip using the knowledge from me, and once we are done with your training one thing will be clear to both of us: if you are able to fully contain and use the power with me, and the power within yourself. You will learn how to feel the movements of many things around you, see what cannot be seen, act and react to any kind of threat and stop it cold. Among all these things, if you can handle them, you will be able to learn the teachings of the demon world. All of our studies, powers, and uses will be at your disposal. You are lucky to have someone like me around in this troubling time, so be grateful that I am doing any of this at all. Are you prepared?**" Naruto simply nodded and readied himself for whatever was coming.

(In another cave somewhere)

A bedridden figure was pouring over an open scroll by candlelight when something in the shadows, approaching the person. The man came close and whispered something in the other's ear. The person holding the scroll put it down and smiled. "So, it's finally reappeared again, has it? I believe it's time to get moving, don't you, Sasake?" Another person came to the bedside, a man with a sword to his back and eerie eyes; red eyes with three commas rotating. He bowed in respect. "Yes, Master."


	5. Training Troubles

**A/N: Reviews! Also I have remade the other crappy chapters. Enjoy.**

Training Troubles

"**We are about to begin your training. Are you ready?**" The Kyuubi said. Naruto simply nodded his head and readied himself for whatever was coming. "**First, we will work on something you already know: your Shadow Clone technique. You know by channeling your chakra properly and, through hand signs you can make realistic clones of yourself. But what you don't know is that you can take it further, simply by using those clones. I will show you how this is done.**" Naruto's eyebrow was raised a little and he crossed his arms. "Don't you need hands to make hand signs?" He asked skeptically. The beast smirked at the comment. "**Yes, indeed you do. Come closer and I will show you something fun.**"

Naruto walked towards the cage bars as the Kyuubi closed its eyes and dark smoke started to appear, covering the entire area. The smoke startled him and slowed his approach but he kept coming. He went through the bars, peering through the smoke and noticed a figure at the center. When all was visible again, Naruto saw the Kyuubi had vanished and in its place was a person: a beautiful woman with flowing red hair ending at her waist. She had the face of an angel and the eyes of the demon Kyuubi itself. She wore a blood-red kimono, covering a voluptuous body and only slightly revealing an incredible bust. She would have appeared normal to anyone, except she had red eyes, pointy fox ears sticking out of the top of her head and a long red tail coming out of her back. Naruto started at her for a few moments then she smiled, revealing her fangs. When she spoke she sounded like a human. "What's the matter, fox got your tongue?" She said.

Naruto shook himself out of his stupor and slightly blushed. "It's nothing…I just didn't think demons could take on human forms." He looked away when he said it. She looked at him oddly, and then shrugged. "Back when I wanted to be entertained, I would visit the human world in disguise. But of course you wouldn't know that. The humans, they normally run at the very sight of me."

He walked over to her, inspecting her new form. When he was done he looked her square in the face. "So, what do I call you now?" He asked. She was taken aback by the question, a surprised look on her face. "What do you mean by that?" She replied. Naruto placed his arms behind his head. "Well, you are going to teach me new skills, right? Normally sensei would be the right title, but that is given to people who you respect and are your superiors, like a teacher to a student. I just met you and I barely know you. Besides, I can't just keep calling you Kyuubi over and over. "

She crossed her arms and thought deeply. Her eyes were closed for some time when she snapped her fingers in enlightenment. "What about Yunika? Yunika…Kitsune. Yea, that's it! Yunika Kitsune, I like it." She said. Naruto put his arms down and stared at her again. "Why that?" He asked. She came close to his face and said softly, "What's the matter? You don't like it?" Naruto leaned back a few inches and give her a wary eye. "I thought it sounded cute. Yunika sounds a lot like "unique", and Kitsune does mean "fox"…so it makes sense." Yunika said, sticking her tongue out at Naruto. _Unique, huh…she's more like a little kid when she's in this form._ Naruto thought.

He sat cross-legged and rested his hands on his knees. "Alright, so what's first?" He said. Yunika got a serious look on her face and approached him slowly, almost seductively. "First off, you will learn how to utilize the power of your clones. Yes, you can make many clones thanks to my power, and with your quick thinking they prove useful, but you have only scratched the surface of the full potential of them."

She did some hand signs and two clones appeared beside her. "As you know, Shadow Clones have about one-tenth of your normal chakra, so they can't do much other than be used as decoys and the like. However, there was a time when they were used even more efficiently."

Naruto was skeptic as Yunika made another hand sign and started to concentrate. Naruto's eyes widened when he saw red chakra come out of the clones and flow into her body. The chakra flow stopped and the clones vanished. Yunika smiled, placing her hands on her hips. "It's a simple technique that allows you to summon your chakra back to you after using the clones. It's nothing special though; the main use was to get your strength back before dispelling the justu."

"Alright, and this was the technique that you wanted to teach me? All it does is give you back your chakra. It seems pretty useless to me." Naruto said.

"Of course not, this is one of the many justu I know that will help both of us. Consider it part of your training. I am correct to assume that you have done the tree-climbing and walk-on-water exercises?" Yunika asked. Naruto nodded. "Then you should know the basic principles on the subject of chakra, on how to control and maintain the flow of chakra. Think of it as when you were training to use sage mode, but with one difference: while preparing to use sage mode you must first slowly collect a steady amount of chakra from the environment. With this justu, you will have to focus on where you want to gather the chakra from.

"But you must be precise; you don't want to try this on a living person you know and lose control on how much chakra you take. The one thing that makes this justu different to your sage mode is you have a limit to how much you can take from a living source of chakra. That's why we are going to start with your clones: they are expendable and you'll have your strength back when you master it. I'll explain later, but for now this will be what you must put your focus on the most while we are alone. You'll just have to trust me." She finished.

Naruto stood and called, **"Shadow Clone Justu!"** and two clones appeared. He placed his hands together for the focal point of his chakra to concentrate and closed his eyes. "Ok, since this will be slightly different to how I trained with sage mode, what do I want to do…?" Naruto whispered. He could hear Yunika's voice in his head. _"First you must imagine yourself tied to your clones and try to see the chakra link that is made between you and the clones. A chakra link is when two minds are connected by a justu of sorts. We too, have a chakra link which allows us to talk to one another. It's also how you've been able to utilize my chakra in dire times. In theory, you should be able to do the same thing with your clones."_ She said.

He focused on his clones and saw them in his mind's eye. He pictured his chakra connecting the clones and him together in an invisible link and then he pictured himself trying to draw the flow of chakra towards him. He kept at it for a few minutes and then stopped when nothing happened and the clones disappeared. "Why did they vanish?" He asked. "When all of the chakra is sucked out of the clones they will naturally go away. The process works like trying to catch the ocean tide with your hands. When you try pulling the chakra out it won't just come to you, it goes everywhere. It's up to you to be able to gather the chakra under your control and bring it to your body." She answered.

"You won't get it on the first try." Yunika said. Naruto frowned. "I figured that. This is going to take some getting used to." He said. _Not much else to do except keep going at it._ He thought. He tried again, this time with more attention to the clones. Yunika smirked and turned to the cracked seal. She walked over to it and placed her hands on it and started to rum her chakra through her arms, into the seal, trying to use what power she had to slow the effects of the justu. _At least one of us should have some progress by the morning._ She thought.

Hours had passed since the training began and Naruto was exhausted. He was covered in sweat and his chakra was nearly tapped. His breathing was weak and his eyes drooped with fatigue. "I'm…going to…get this…justu down any moment." He gasped. Yunika laughed. "You may think that, but look at you! You're about to keel over, and you've only been at this for seven hours. If you don't stop and rest, soon I'll start to feel the effects." She said.

Naruto's arms fell to his sides and he dropped to his knees. "Can't stop…have to get this…justu mastered…or else…" He started as his eyes closed and he collapsed, his body falling to the floor.

Yunika sighed and went to Naruto. "See, I told you." She inspected his body. _You always did take things too far when it came to training. It's understandable though, with the entire world at stake, not to mention my life. Still…I have to admit, he has determination._ She thought. She turned him over to check his face and an odd look spread across hers. Naruto had on his forehead a strange symbol: a simple diamond inside a circle. _Hmm…what's with this mark? That wasn't there before._ Yunika thought.

She went to touch it but it started to fade away. _Well, no skin off my bones if it's gone. But it seems strange…_ She stood and walked back to the seal. Hearing the snores of a good night's sleep coming from Naruto, she shook her head and shrugged. _At least he's resting. Anymore training and then he would start tapping into my chakra, and considering the situation…but I wonder what that mark was about. _She thought. _Oh well, at least we've begun. Let's see how long it takes for him to wish he'd never been born. _Yunika smiled as she placed her hands back on the seal, dark thoughts beginning to brew in her mind.

(Eight hours and thirty-two minutes later, with Kakashi's group)

The four were resting nearby a cave across from a stream as the morning's light just started to shine over the cliffs that hung overhead. Kakashi and Kisame were keeping watch over their comrades in the branches of a tree as they were sleeping, weapons at the ready just in case if the need to fight arose.

The two were silent as the leaves blew across the land. Kakashi was ever wary when it came to being cautious, but tonight something had been nagging at the back of his head. He looked over at Kisame and spoke his mind. "There's something you guys haven't told us, isn't there?" He asked. Kisame smiled, his teeth gleaming in the early morning light. "What makes you say that? We've told you all you've asked of us." He replied.

Kakashi bowed his head. "Okay then, tell me this: this Goturo, how is it he knows about Naruto's condition? Not many people know that he has the nine-tailed fox spirit sealed within him. Also, why hire S-rank criminals as bounty hunters? Goturo has no doubt heard of you two so you can't really expect to get paid. On top of that, how is it that he knew about what was wrong with the seal placed on Naruto?" He pressed.

Kisame's smile grew wider and he started to chuckle. "I'm not entirely sure. But I have to admit, I didn't think he'd be right on the money about you."

Kakashi's eye narrowed at the comment. "What does that mean?" Kisame turned to him. "Itachi asked the same thing about it to Goturo and he simply replied, "I know because I need to know. No doubt this Kakashi will ask the same question and if he does, tell him that I am the only solution to this predicament that has been laid out, and that he will need to hurry if he has any hope of meeting the time limit." Those were his exact words." He said.

_It seems like this man is hiding something besides a powerful weapon. The question is what is it?_ Kakashi thought.

"I don't fully understand this guy's motives either; all I care about right now is that we're doing a job and getting paid for it. What happens on the way happens and there's not much we can do about it, unless of course it's part of the job." Kisame said.

"What about your main objective? What about getting the Kyuubi from Naruto? Doesn't this job get in the way of that?" Kakashi asked. Kisame lowered his head. "Itachi and I have decided to wait until this whole ordeal is over. What's the point in getting one of the most powerful beings this world has ever seen if the world is going to be destroyed anyway?"

Kakashi laughed. "Isn't that noble of you to wait until after the world is saved, only to try and capture the beast." Kisame laughed in return. "It is, isn't it?" The two laughed quietly for a time. Kakashi stood up and stretched. "Well, I believe it's time to get moving. Wouldn't you agree?" He said. "That suits me just fine." He replied. He dropped down and went to Itachi. Kakashi nudged Sakura awake and helped her to her feet. "Are you ready?" He asked her. She rubbed at her eyes and nodded. He looked over at Itachi for a response. He too, nodded in reply. Then the group started running after Naruto with earnest, hoping to catch up with all haste.

Kakashi had been running things through his mind about what Kisame said, trying to find some loophole, something that didn't fit. So far, everything seemed fine. But other things were troubling him now, and it was nowhere near pleasant.


	6. The First Hunt

The First Hunt

When Naruto awoke he was back in the outside world. He prodded around in his head for signs of Yunika and found her essence next what he believed to be the cracked seal within the cage. _She must be sleeping to save what strength she has left for later._ He thought. He stepped outside and stretched his limbs in the morning sun and climbed up the wall just on the side of the cave to get a better grasp of where they were.

Over the great distance the landscape showed nothing but more large rock formations jutting out of the ground in which there were dozens of craggy areas surrounding the many protrusions. _Jeez, I really hope the landscape changes soon._ He thought. His stomach rumbled like a mini earthquake in his body. He held his gut and groaned in hunger. "Oh man, I haven't eaten since yesterday. I'm starving!" He said.

He sat once again in meditation and prepared to gather chakra from the environment for sage mode. _I figure that if I can feel out anything with life, it might be edible._ He thought. Just as he began to collect the energy, Yunika yelled throughout his mind. "_Wait! Don't you remember what I said about using your chakra in ways that could increase the strain on the cracked seal?! Attempting to use sage mode is one such danger because of the amount of outside chakra you have to obtain would speed up the process and we need all the time we can get._" She said.

Naruto jumped at the sudden verbal assault. "Sheesh, I thought you were sleeping. I didn't think that trying to collect chakra would be such a risk. But you can't exactly blame me; using chakra is second-nature to all ninja." He said.

Yunika growled. "_Well think next time before you use your chakra! Any kind other than your natural chakra and my own chakra would enhance the damage done already, so you must be careful. What were you trying to achieve anyway?_" "I was hoping I could find something to eat and the best way that I can do that is to sense around the area with sage mode for food." Naruto explained.

Yunika mumbled for a bit and sighed. "_If that's all then consider it a problem solved. When I call you down to my cage, do you know how I do it?_" Naruto folded his arms in agitation and grumbled a no. She snickered, "_It doesn't surprise me. It works on the principle of chakra links. When two or more entities are connected or summoned by means of a justu it creates a chakra link, an invisible connection that only those who were used in said justu can sense. Your clones, and how we are talking to each other at the moment, are a form of a chakra link._" She explained.

"Okay, I get that part. So give me the short story on how to bring you to me." Naruto said. "_You must search out my essence and try to summon it to you with your chakra and will. Once you have, you and I will share a mind together. Your body and skills will be united with my instincts and knowledge for use of many things; in this case I will teach you how to use the animal senses that will follow with the combination. _

"_The differences from sage mode and your normal five senses to this are while in sage mode you can feel out for the many chakras of living things and your normal senses are merely human, while when we are combined you will be able to hear the heartbeats and determine the position of your enemy. You should be able to see the blood of anything living or dead and track it down with my eyes. With these skills you talents will be keener than normal, more importantly this will help teach you how to zone in on the target you want to use the technique on._"

_I'd hate to hear the long version…_"What's the name of this old justu anyway?" Naruto asked. Nothing was said for a minute and then Naruto discovered something hilarious. "You, you don't remember?" He said and when silence was his answer he started to laugh. If he could see Yunika's face he would see her scowling at him. "_Of course I haven't! It's just been so long that anyone has spoken to me about it and besides, it was named in a different language that can't be said in your tongue. However now that it comes to mind, I remember it does translate into "Kyuuketsuki Hankestu," which means "Vampire Judgement" because of the principles it works on and how it affects both caster and victim._"

Naruto began to look worried. "What does that mean? What's going to happen to me if I use it?" He asked. "_Hmm, that's hard to say. It hasn't been used in so long I can't even guess at what could happen. The only way to know is to for you to find out." _She said.

Naruto sighed. "Alright, let's give it a whirl." He closed his eyes and concentrated on Yunika's presence and attempted to draw it into his consciousness. He felt her out again just like before and without noticing, something clicked and in an instant he and Yunika were of the same mind and thought. Naruto could hear Yunika's voice more loudly and clearly than before. "_Very good and on the first try too. Still you'll need to be able to do better in the future. Now first off, go and find a pond. No arguments, just do it._" She said.

Naruto leaped from pillar to pillar while keeping an eye on any reflective surfaces on the ground. In the corner of his eye he saw a good sized watering hole under a massive overhanging cavern. He raised an eyebrow. _That should work._ He thought.

He stopped at the water's edge and leaned over to see his image. His face went from interest to shock. Like before when he dove into Yunika's power his appearance had changed. However this time he saw new characteristics added. His hair was a few inches longer and lighter in color, a pale yellow. His ears were slightly pointed and the whisker marks looked as though they had begun to fade away.

It wasn't just that; when he stood up he saw himself taller than he remembered and strangely, more muscularly. "Whoa, what did you do to my body?" He said inspecting his newly acquired features. "_When you and I are as one in this state, some of my features will be meshed in with some of yours, such as the eyes, teeth and hands. It doesn't matter whether you are in my prison with me or you call me in your head. _

"_Like this I can see what you see and hear what you hear, I can even grant you better focus when we're like this. But the ears and the hair I can't explain. It's possible it could be a side effect of your training with the justu. I did say that it transforms the body of the caster. What amazes me is how fast it works or that you didn't notice until now. That's why I wanted to see what your reaction would be like when you actually saw yourself like this. Well? What do you think?"_

Naruto stood up to examine himself further. "I look a little, what's the right word, unworldly? How long do the effects last?" He asked. "_I don't know if they do. This is the first time I've seen someone use the technique before. I have to say I find it fascinating._ _Now close your eyes._"

Naruto did as he was told. Thanks to his ninja training he immediately became tuned into the sounds surrounding him: the slow steady drip of water falling from the stalactites on the lip of the cave, wind blowing through the rock crevasses, the heartbeats of animals out and about for their morning breakfast. "_Okay, now what? I can already do this with ease._" He said, now in thought-speak. Yunika snapped at him. "_Fool! Pay close attention and you might learn something._"

Naruto winced in pain as he felt an overpowering surge of something invade his thoughts. When it finally stopped he could think straight again. "Hey what the hell was that?! What are you trying to do, implode my brain?!" He shouted.

"_Take it easy! If you're done yelling at me take a look around you._" He opened his eyes and gasped. The area had changed before his eyes. The structure of it all was still the same, but there was a noticeable difference.

The land was aglow with faint, wavering phantom lights, parts of which were different colors. The earth was alive with a reddish-brown. Nearby plant life had a hazy green. Others swarmed the area and mixed in with the lights. "Wow, this is…what am I seeing?" Naruto asked in awe. "_Remember carefully, I did say that I can give you a boost. The pain you felt was me fully assimilating with your mind and will lessen each time it happens. You are now seeing through my eyes. My vision is more advanced than humans so I can see things they can't. What you're observing now is the soul essence of everything around you. Not chakra, the actual pure life aura of the planet. Plants, animals, humans, they all have a kind of resonating energy that you can see with my sight. Try listening for anything nearby again._"

Naruto, once again listening to the environment, heard things more distinctively. He could clock the buzzing noise from an insect eleven feet from the far left and tell where the rhythm of the heartbeat of a snake that was seven yards directly behind him. "It's like having Hinata's Byakugan for my ears. Let me guess, acute instinctive hearing?"

"_You're getting better. Now for your first test, using these new tricks I want you to hunt down your meal and kill it. No weapons or justu allowed, only your skills. I'm also adding a special handicap of sorts: when our minds are united you will communicate with me only by thought. It will be good for you to get used to this for stealth missions in the future._"

"_Okay! I can do this no problem. But where do I start?" _ Naruto thought to her.

Yunika sighed. _"You can start by paying attention to the flow of energy as it shimmers across the sky. The more mobile ones are usually animals, the bigger the better. Happy hunting."_ Naruto could hear the smugness in her voice. _I can tell she's going to enjoy this a bit more than she should._ He thought to himself.

And so with a half hour of practice under his belt Naruto prepared for his first catch. He found a large green lizard whose head was the size of his entire body, on a boulder resting in the sun. He cracked his knuckles and flexed his hands-turned-claws, slowly raking them against the hard ground to check their sharpness. He smiled a toothy smile and chuckled. _It's time to test these bad boys out!_ He thought and pounced.

Now, right at this moment something had happened. Maybe it was Naruto's scent or the creature wasn't really asleep. Whatever the case the lizard's eyes opened, turned its head upward, and swatted him away with its tail. Naruto bounced off a stone wall and landed in heap. He rubbed his head and stood up. _That was just perfect. I just got my ass handed to me by a reptile._ He thought. Yunika was laughing hysterically. _"Shut it! You watch I'll get that damn thing yet."_ He thought at her.

He retaliated with a yell and rushed at the beast's face, aiming an uppercut for the jaw. The blow connected and the lizard's head jerked back from the impact. It roared in anger and tried eating him. Its maw snapped over and over again only to get dust in Naruto's wake as he dashed to avoid it. Getting aggravated, Naruto launched wild swings along its back, one after another with no avail.

"_Nothing is working so far. Got any ideas?"_ Naruto thought. _"Try severing the tendons in the back of its legs. If anything it should slow the beast down some." _She replied. He kept suppressing the urge to take out his kunai and skin this thing alive and using his justu to beat it to death but he knew he would fail the test if he did.

Naruto leaped behind the lizard and ran for its legs while keeping the creature's tail in sight. He swiped at the area just below the back of the knees, luckily drawing blood from all four. The lizard shrieked again this time out of pain and collapsed with its head just missing Naruto as he rolled away.

"_Now that we have a minute to talk, time for a quiz: what parts of most lizards are edible?"_ Yunika questioned. _"I don't have a clue. You mind giving me a hint?"_ He answered sarcastically. She had begun to get irritated. _"Again, that doesn't surprise me. The tail! Take off the lizard's tail. Some species can detach them in order to get away from their attackers. It can survive without it."_ She explained. Naruto made for the tip and grabbed on to it, dug in his claws and pulled with all his strength.

The creature thrashed about and Naruto struggled with the amount of force it was using as he attempted to yank off the thing's tail. The tail rose and started flinging Naruto around trying to get rid of him. Naruto was enraged at this point and shouted at the beast, "Damn it! All I want is your tail, you stupid giant mutant gecko!" Yunika snickered. _"You know if something like this is too hard for you, you can always stop. But if you can't win against a mindless thing such as this, you have no chance at saving yourself or your friends."_

That really set him off. "I'll show you!" He screamed and let go as the beast's tail went up and threw Naruto sky-bound. When he reached the zenith of his flight he readied his right hand. As he fell he positioned his body to pick up speed fast and aimed for the tail base and just as he neared it he brought his hand down and cleaved it off.

The lizard bellowed one last time before it finally passed out. Naruto was panting from exertion. _"Ha! I told you I could do it. So, did I pass?"_ He thought with a smirk and Yunika pulled out of his mind.

"_Hmm, you could have done better but you managed well enough._ _You got some food so I'd say not bad, but you need to learn to keep your emotions under control in intense situations. Part of this was about you being put in a dire position where you couldn't use your normal techniques or tactics to fight, only your ninja skills and my animal instincts. What if this was an actual fight with someone like a skilled ninja and you didn't have any chakra or kunai? You would have lost in a matter of seconds. That's why because of our predicament you must learn to utilize all of our best traits to increase our chances of survival."_ She said.

Naruto frowned. "My, my, aren't you a hard one to please? Well, I say let's cook this baby up and chow down." A half hour went away as he found a large flat surface and cleaned it off as best as he could to cook the tail and another half hour passed by as Naruto collected anything burnable and surrounded the tail with dead plants and some fire-starting materials from his back pouch. Then Yunika instructed him on some plants that could be used as spices to give the meat flavor that could be found in the area.

While the meat cooked Naruto asked, "Once we're finished eating and I have my energy back, when do we start working on our minds coming together?" _"As soon as possible, we need to make up for lost time. You still need to work on the other justu before you start trying anything else. For a start if you are going to continue fighting the way you do now, you'll need a new set of clothes, especially if your changes keep up while using the Vampire Judgement technique. Yours are pretty wrecked. There is a town not too far off course from our destination. We can go and get a new wardrobe there."_ Naruto looked at his clothing and saw it was cut up in some places.

"_Another thing is the chakra link we have that merges our thoughts. Something like that takes a lot of stamina from both of us in order to maintain it. That's why you were so tired after all of the fighting stopped. We will experiment with it later so we can get a proper time estimate but for now we'll wait."_ She finished.

The sounds of the crackling fire filled the air as Naruto twiddled his thumbs. A thought occurred and he asked, "So, you used to visit the human world? What was it like back then and from where did you come from?" He heard nothing from her for a minute and was about to ask another question when she answered. "_Back then it wasn't so different from these times. People fought to bring peace and died for the cause. It's one thing that will never change in this war-ridden world. There's always a reason to fight, no matter how ridiculous it is. That's just how all humans are. As for where I came from, I don't remember. My past is a mystery to me of what I was before I was what I am today. Why do you want to know?"_

Naruto shrugged. "I guess because you and me are going to be like this for a while now I figured that we should get to know each other. It can't hurt to open up to someone every now and then, can it?" He questioned. Yunika chuckled harshly. _"If only you knew. The carriers before you have always wanted to keep me in chains because they feared my power and my anger towards them. When I was transferred into you I had had enough, so that was when I decided to use the chakra seal on myself so I would be ready to take my revenge on the world. Tell me, are you so sure that me opening up doesn't hurt? Because my memories will always hurt when I look back at what they did to me and nothing can change my mind about that fact."_

For a single moment Naruto could sense what lied in Yunika's heart: an alien sense of hidden ill temperament, malevolence and mistrust. Then it went away and she closed it off from him. Naruto closed his eyes and remembered what it was like before he had friends. It was a dark and cruel place that he never wanted to return to again, "You know, not everyone is like that. I have seen through your eyes and I have never seen the world look more magical before today. If you've seen my past through my eyes you would see that people can change if they have the chance.

"One thing I've learned is that revenge is not a path anyone should take, not even if it serves a greater purpose for peace. All you will find is an even darker place than where you are now and you won't be able to get out. I believe there is a touch of goodness in everyone, because even in the deepest darkness there is always a light of hope." He said.

She said nothing for a while but when she did her only words were, _"That might be true and I thank you for the compliment, but you're wrong on one thing. I'm a demon, not a person. Your philosophy doesn't apply to my kind. The tail is probably ready by now. You should eat then get ready to head out."_

Naruto shrugged again and checked the meat while Yunika, back in her cage, was in deep thought about the conversation. She was leaning against the back wall next to the seal wrapping her arms around her chest. _You were always good with words and I have seen your past, every second of it. But for the life of me I will never be able to understand what you see in changes like that. There is no chance for me to be saved. Not now, not ever. All that matters to me is dealing with this curse as fast as we can, otherwise it will mean the end of all hope, and right now my hope is riding on Naruto getting that blasted sword before he finds out who and what Goturo bastard really is._


	7. Shadow on Shadow

Shadow on Shadow

(Second day, midmorning, with Kakashi's group)

The four of them were currently on the move, once again following the path laid out by the rampaging blonde. They had left the forest and were following the trail surrounded grasslands on both sides and torn up areas of dirt and gravel.

Sakura was getting aggravated and said, "I know you said that we would be able to catch up with Naruto, but explain it to us how that will happen if we keep this course. I mean, he can't really be that far ahead of us, can he?"

Kisame looked over to her and shook his head in annoyance. "And here I always thought you were the smart one of the group. I'll explain it again, this time with more detail. From his actions that we've seen so far, he appears to be heading north and more importantly, in the direction of the Light Country. With that in mind we can assume that he's actually trying to get to the Light Country and if that's true, he'll need to go over water to get there. The only way to get to it is by boat and there are only three ports up north that make rounds to that place." He said.

"Since Naruto is still having trouble measuring the amounts of chakra he uses, even at his speed it will take some time to get to the ocean. If you calculate to amount stamina he's using with the amount of rest he would need to recover and stack that against our travel time, even if he manages to get a boat ride the rest of the way we should be on him within three to four days. Naruto may be able to recover quickly but all of that running will still take its toll on him." Kakashi said.

Sakura sighed. "That much I know already. I'm just worried about that knucklehead and I'm still furious at what you two did to him. I've seen him change before, but nothing compared to this. Between what happened to the village and Sasuke leaving I don't know what I'd do if something bad happened to Naruto in this state."

Itachi turned his head to her and gave her a blank stare. "None of that will matter if we don't pick up the pace and catch him. All will be for naught if he dies of either overusing his strength or he ends up attacking a nearby village and starting a small war." He said. That said they charged forward as fast as they could.

(Six hours later, late afternoon)

The environment changed from breezy fields to craggy valleys as they passed on through areas littered with boulder fragments and body parts of various animals with patches of blood everywhere. _Yikes, looks like he really did a number on this place, although it seems more like a _monster_ did all this._ Sakura thought. They all paused for a minute to catch their breaths and Kisame inspected the damage done to the bodies.

He was silent for a time as he went through the carcasses. When he was done he motioned for Itachi to join him. Sakura and Kakashi absentmindedly followed. He pointed to Sakura. "You, pink-haired brat, take a careful look at this corpse and tell me what you see."

She leered at him. "My name is _Sakura_, but of course you only pretend to forget just to annoy me." She said. Kisame shrugged. "Have to find something to pass the time. Now use that medical eye of yours to tell me how this creature died."

She bent down to get a closer look at the dead body of a wolf missing its back left leg, front right leg, left ear and jaw and covered in slash marks. After several minutes she stood up and turned to Kisame. "Do you see it, how this beast really died?" He said. "What do you mean?" Kakashi asked.

Sakura pointed to the animal. "Notice the missing limbs and jaw, and the other injuries it has. Normally when you lose an arm you lose a large amount of blood with it, but in this case there isn't as much as there should be. Further analyses shows that the long scratch marks on the body may be big, but they aren't deep and inside the wounds there are puncture marks aimed at the heart." She explained.

Kisame nodded. "I've seen the other bodies and they show the same. First the animals are killed through the perforation to the heart, and then with some strength, ripped apart to give the appearance of an animal attack. All of this was staged by an expert. They used something long and sharp to make the punctures and I don't know what else for the rest of the damage. Whatever did this is intelligent and strong, enough to make all this in an attempt to fool someone." He waved to the wreckage.

Itachi looked around with caution. "We have to be on our guard. We have to assume that this was a trap set by one or more people or possibly a message meant for someone else. Either way, somebody went through the trouble to make this happen." He said. Sakura looked at him with a brow raised. "Are you sure about all that? True, the way that these were killed is odd but I doubt any sort trap is involved." She said.

Itachi closed his eyes and bowed his head. "Paranoia has saved many a man." He replied.

"What I want to know is how fish breath over here could tell what happened." Sakura said throwing a thumb over her shoulder. Kisame smiled with pride. "Just because I smash and dice up everything and everyone I fight, doesn't mean I don't know some things." He said.

"That aside, I think we've rested enough. Let's get moving." Kakashi ordered and in a flash they were gone. After they left, far behind them in the shadows of a large fissure, four figures slowly appeared and when a few moments passed, gave chase.

(Two hours and twenty minutes later, dusk)

A crackling fire kept the oncoming darkness at bay while the group prepared to camp in for the night. Kakashi was resting against a boulder with Sakura beside him eating some provisions. Kisame sat cross-legged with Samehada lying against his shoulder and Itachi was tending to the flames.

Itachi sat with Kisame and his eyes met with Kakashi's. "So Itachi, there's something that's been troubling my mind for a while. What else can you tell us about the Light Country?" Kakashi asked with an enigmatic glint in his eye.

"Neither Kisame or myself know much about the history itself, only that it's a somewhat lonesome place that resides high in the north. This much we are sure of. We had never even heard of it until a summons was sent to us." Itachi stated. "You were summoned?" Sakura asked. "Yes. It came in the form of a bright yellow bird with long white plumage with a letter attached to one of its legs. I hadn't seen one of its species before then." Itachi finished.

Kakashi's eyes widened slightly as Itachi spoke. "I've never seen one myself but I have heard of a bird like that. It's a rare breed, almost extinct in fact. I don't recall the name but they were also called dawn breakers, for their colors. Their home can be found on some of the desolated isles to the northeast." He said.

"The 3rd Hokage told me about one once when I was a boy and…" He trailed off and sighed as his eyes moved in the direction of some crevices a good distance away from the camp. "Alright you lot, come on out. There's no point in hiding anymore."

Some movement could be heard, then out of the growing shadows a team of four people came out into the amber evening light. Making up the team there was Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyuga and Rock Lee in their usual attire. Sakura stood up. "What are you all doing here?" She asked. Shikamaru was the first to reply. "The real question should be what are they doing here with you?" He said giving Itachi and Kisame a look as the two prepared for battle. Sakura and Kakashi looked at each other, "I think it's time we exchanged notes." Kakashi said with seriousness in his voice.

After everyone had settled down, Kakashi explained what had happened so far with them. "…because of the time it takes to move from the Leaf Village to the northern peninsula, we were hoping to catch up to Naruto and see what can be done about his condition. Itachi and Kisame have told us everything they have on this sword and the Light Country, and are currently in a temporary ceasefire with us." He said.

"Well, that explains why they're not in chains. They play a role in retrieving Naruto and keeping him under if he's still out of control. What does this justu you placed on him specifically do?" Shikamaru asked. Itachi's gaze wavered to Shikamaru. "Ordinarily for what we had prepared for, it would have an effect on his chakra, forcing it to act against his body and cause physical damage to him. Not enough to kill him, just enough to render him incapable of fighting. But I didn't expect for the demon inside him to affect it in such a drastic way and because of this it makes things more difficult in the whole plan of getting him and collecting our bounty." He told him.

Shikamaru contemplated his words and Kisame finally spoke up. "Alright, we told you our side. How about you tell us yours?" He said. All eyes were on Shikamaru. He sighed and grumbled, "Right then, to start from the beginning I think it's best if Hinata goes first."

Shyly, Hinata looked down and slowly started. "Well…um…I was out in the forest training, when I heard the sounds of people fighting, so I followed it. When I thought I was close enough I used my Byakugan to see Kakashi-sensei, Sakura and these two together. They talked for a little bit, and then they ran off." She said.

"It was then that she headed directly for Lady Tsunade to tell her what she found. Afterwards Lady Tsunade sent word for the rest of us to gather and go after you and assist you if necessary, naming me leader of this squad. And it's a good thing too, fortunately I know a little bit about the Light Country." Shikamaru finished. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a map. He opened it up and pointed to the peninsula they were headed for. "As you know, there are ports all around the coast of the land, but very few of them have boats that go to the Light Country. I'll tell you the reason behind that fact.

"The Light Country was originally called "the Land of Sun," until it under new leadership. More like a small island in the shape of the sun, hence the name change, most people don't know about it so it's not surprising that none of you do. The only reason I know anything about it is because it was part of my studies as a chunin.

"Now for the important stuff, the island is a small, neutral land that is run by two figureheads and is unknowingly infamous for a prison that is used by every nation, but isn't known to the general public. A special prison that is known only by a few high ranking officials, like the Kages, and people they trust. The prison is exceptional and is purposely made to hold each and every one of its guests, all of them S-rank.

"The prison is set dead-center of the island with a fifty-meter moat surrounding it and one main river leading to the sea. It's more than a mile and a half tall from top to bottom, two-thirds of which are underwater with five feet of sheer rock making up its structure and six inch metal plating covering it on the inside. On top of that it has a very powerful security system throughout the prison and has a record of zero escaped convicts. All in all, anything that's sent in doesn't come out.

"The facility acquires funding from not only the lord of the Light Country, but also from those who send the criminals there and everyone who knows about it, call it "the Nine Hells," because it has nine levels each holding more dangerous criminals than the last. Sometimes they'll even send a message to offer aid in the capturing of said villains. As for who takes care of the prison, you should know him as Goturo, the warden of the Nine Hells. He works with the existing ruler of the Light Country to keep the prisoners where they are and runs daily inspections to make sure everything is in order."

With that said he put the map away and took a deep breath. "That about covers everything I have on the subject. You wouldn't believe how much of a drag it was for me to find the right books on this place." Shikamaru said. "But as far as that goes I don't know a thing about the sword you mentioned earlier. I didn't think broadswords could be found anymore and any that exist now are probably useless."

Sakura yawned. "Maybe, but it makes me happy knowing what we have to look forward to now. I hate it when I have to do a mission blind. But for now why don't we all get some sleep and you can tell us more in the morning. We have a short enough time limit as it is." Kisame placed Samehada aside and got comfortable. "I second the motion. Blonde has to run out of steam eventually so why not at night." He said. This made the new group give him wary stares.

He chuckled. "Itachi and I weren't going to pull anything if that's what you're all thinking. The reason behind that as you would put it is because of the most essential part we haven't told you. Due to the technique Itachi used going wrong, we don't know how to approach this safely without hurting your friend. However the real problem lies in Naruto himself."

Kakashi stepped in. "It's possible that because of what he's going through something neither of us has seen before, we don't know what stress he could be going under to maintain his speed and form, what intense pain he must be feeling right at the moment and even out of all that he is still holding himself back for the sake of his comrades. I can tell that much, but I can't begin to fathom what's happening to him is pleasant. So for your sakes when you see him please try to hold yourselves back."

Hinata turned her face away while everyone else nodded in conclusion. Just before they all turned in she uttered, "But…just because…it's as you say it is, doesn't mean that there isn't a way to save him from what's happening to him. After all he's done for us, for our village, we owe it to him. And…I'll…I will risk everything and anything I have to help him, no matter what it takes."

Sakura, Kakashi and her teammates all stared wide eyed at her for the fact stood that she didn't say much. For her to show such fierceness and passion and in front of two S-ranked criminals was truly something rare indeed. Sakura smiled. "Well said Hinata. You're right; we have to do everything we can to bring him back, safe and sound." Her sight turned to Itachi and Kisame. "That goes for you two as well. After all, he _is_ your money card."

Kisame laughed a genuine laugh. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm starting to like you." He said. To his surprise, Sakura actually laughed back. "Amazingly, I don't." She replied.

Everyone went to sleep with Kakashi being the last one to doze off with the weight of the conversation on his mind as he watched the embers of the fire die out.


	8. Tricky Trials

Tricky Trials

(One day and a half later, high noon, with Naruto)

"I get that I needed new clothes but why do I need these ones, and in the middle of summer? The temperature alone will kill me." Naruto inquired. Not too long after the fight with the lizard, Naruto had run into (or through to be more precise) a small group of bandits and the result of the encounter had been more blood on his part as well as most of his standard outfit being ruined. So Yunika convinced him to venture into the town she mentioned before and got a new one, along with a bag and some unusual items she insisted on him getting.

Naruto was standing in his new getup with a little of his own flare thrown in: a long black leather duster over a black-and-orange shirt bearing the whirlpool mark on his chest, black pants and heavy boots, all of them one-size larger. _"Stop complaining! It's because of the changes you're undergoing. So far all that's happened is you grew some inches but who knows what else will happen to you. Now I'd say that's enough talking about that. Let's assimilate and try working on Vampire Judgment again. Over the past three days you've worked hard on it and you've almost got it down but let's try it one more time, this time watch with my eyes." _She said.

He did as instructed and felt the transformation take hold as their minds came together. A slight shock went through his head. "_At least you're right about the pain going away."_ He thought to her as he saw the world's life energy come into focus. "_Remember your training. Try to draw out the chakra and seize control of it. Bring it to you and absorb it. You should be able to feel it immediately."_ She thought to him.

Naruto summoned two clones and made the hand sign and concentrated. As he did he watched the clones for anything distinctively out of place while the justu was working and his eyes widened with surprise as he saw what he felt happening.

The clones were transforming. They grew taller and stronger, the ears became pointed, their hair grew longer and paler and the marks on their faces were fading. _"So, that's the cause of the other add-ons. I think I now know what's going on with your body kid."_ Yunika thought. Naruto was too focused to pay attention to her; his gaze on the amounts of chakra flowing through the air.

Before the chakra could disperse he channeled it through the link the clones had with him and with a slow start he managed to do it and absorb it all. The clones vanished and he jumped around in delight. "Alright, I did it! I did it!" Naruto said with enthusiasm.

"_Yes that's great. Now shut up and get out the mirror and the pocket watch you bought."_ She thought at him. He cringed at the volume of her thoughts but complied. He searched in the bag and brought out a simple hand mirror the size of a baseball.

"_Now is a good time as any to see how long we can hold this mind assimilation together. First we work on establishing a faster connection, which should help in the middle of battle. Next, if we can estimate a time limit, we can use what we know to work on increasing that time limit. We should be able to tell when the boundaries have nearly been met. Afterwards I want you to watch your reflection until your "other features" disappear." _

Naruto held both items at eye level, and kept one eye on the mirror and the other on the watch. It wasn't too long before Naruto started to feel a kind of stress on his body like he had done five days' worth of training and when Yunika began to feel it in her mind she separated from his thoughts and the strain let up. _"It looks like we can only stay like that for twenty minutes before the strain becomes too great to bear." _Yunika thought.

His eyes turned back from red to blue, but the changes done to his ears, hair and whisker marks remained. Two hours had come and gone before Naruto fully changed back. _Twice as long as the first time…that must mean every time I use this technique, the effects will last longer. _He thought.

Naruto had just placed the items back when out of nowhere he felt a falling sensation and his vision blurred. He closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them, he was back in the demon's cell. "What do you think you are doing dragging me down here before warning me? If we were in the middle of-" Naruto started and turned silent when he looked upon the face of an oddly pleased Yunika.

A sly smile was spread on her face with a tiny part of one of her fangs poking out between her lips. A glint in her vermilion eyes told of a mischievous secret that she was hiding. Her arms were crossed under her breasts, unknowingly pushing them up to show extra cleavage. Her tail twitched about playfully and one of her ears was slightly crooked. _That's actually kind of…hot. _He thought.

Naruto was taken aback by all this and for his surprise he got a different look that had started to become a daily thing: a look of annoyance. "What's with the stare? Weren't you about to chew me out again or is your mind elsewhere?" Yunika snickered.

Naruto blinked and grinned back. "Sorry about that. Actually, you're right on both accounts. What was so important you had to bring me down here so fast?" He asked. She chuckled. "It's because, for starters, I know what's happening to your body. When you use the Vampire Judgment technique you undergo a type of physical alteration as you have already seen and I was wondering why that was. I had my suspicions when I saw the changes, but at the time I thought the justu the Uchiha boy placed on you was the cause." She said.

"That much I figured out on my own. What I want to know is what am I turning into?" Naruto asked. Yunika walked up to him and leaned in. "Then pay close attention to what I'm about to tell you. The technique you're learning, does not originate from human kind and the only reason you can use it is because you have me. " She breathed.

Naruto stared wide-eyed at her. "Doesn't originate from human kind? Than where does it come from?" He asked. "Isn't it obvious? The justu was created by demons!" Yunika exasperated. Naruto looked down at his hands. "Demons made this technique? How is that possible?" He said. Yunika brought a hand to her face and sighed in frustration. "Did you think that humans were the only ones, who could do such things? It figures, many of us were here before you were and even then we knew all kinds of things. But I'll come to that later.

"There are many justu in the world and some of them are of demonic origin, however most of them are forbidden for the risks they carry or they can't be used by humans because they're not meant to, not without help from one of our kind at least. The reason why is because normally the human body can't take the stress and it gets torn apart from the inside-out. In special cases like ours, when a human who hosts a demon of any kind tries a demon-style justu, they slowly become what we call Onmyoji."

Naruto looked at her with a blank stare. "Uh, yea, what are Onmyoji?" He asked. "The Onmyoji, or demon sages, are humans who have our powers, and are able to influence the world around them at will. A human who carries a demonic spirit in them has access to their strengths by working together, but the Onmyoji can take it further. They are able to independently use demonic techniques and when they do their bodies change and adapt to best suit their newly acquired powers. They have many talents, one of which is being able to summon Shikigami, spirits from many plains, to their beck and call. Given enough time and proper training you wouldn't even need my help in using such justu." She explained.

"That's pretty cool, but it seems like we wouldn't be able to use any of that due to the chakra seal in your cage." Naruto pointed out. "That's true and that's one of the reasons why I'm teaching you this specific justu for that purpose. Vampire Judgment not only allows you to take chakra from your enemies, it can also be used for using other techniques you know on the fly, without disturbing the deteriorating seal if only a little to perform it." She said.

Naruto looked up at Yunika with a stony face she couldn't read. "I wonder if there's all that to learn, of what else can be done. What else do you know?" He asked with an off tone. Yunika blinked this time. "Look, I know that this is a lot to take in, but you should know that almost everything I have in my bag of tricks can't be used right now. First off, your skill level is still shaky at best with the current justu so trying to learn more would take up too much time, a luxury we can't afford to waste.

"Second, the level of chakra you have isn't anywhere near the amount needed to use the other, more powerful justu even if we combined both of our useable reserves. Third, both of our chakras can't be used for big stuff, like your Rasengan for instance. The more powerful the justu and the more chakra required using it, the more the seal will crack away." She said.

Naruto nodded. "Good enough for me, I guess, but what about later? You yourself said what if I ran into a powerful opponent? I'm not going to live very long if I don't have something more special up my sleeve."

"When and if we can, there are some things that I can teach you. But for now the best thing you can do is work on this justu first. You have passed the first stage which shows you have basic control over your chakra link with your clones. The next stage is to use it on something you don't have a chakra link with, like a wolf or a bunny or the like. To do this you must be in physical contact with the creature, focusing your mind only on that one thing and the rest should follow. The real trick will be to not take so much away that it will die.

"This will prove more difficult than you realize, because when you use it on something such as an animal, something that naturally doesn't have chakra, you will have to convert its energy into chakra. I leave that one to you to figure out."

Naruto took a deep breath and exhaled, "Alright. If that's the way it has to work, then I'll work my way through it and master this justu." Yunika laughed. And with a snap of her fingers Naruto was back in the outside world sitting in meditation. He raised his head and looked around.

The landscape was nothing but grassy valleys in all directions and with the overpowering smell of salt in the air the two knew they weren't that far from the ocean. Naruto was about to start running north when Yunika's voice went off. _"I have an idea for a little game to pass the time. A gamble if you will. We have a little over a day's journey to get to the sea if you stretch it out. You have that time to master the second phase. If you do I'll teach you a very useful justu that you will find interesting. How about it hmm, your luck verses the time limit?"_ She mused.

Naruto smiled. "Ha, Yunika, you're on. I'll show you that with some guts there's nothing I can't do! Besides, I love a handicap, especially when there's a prize at the end."

(At that moment, with Kakashi and Shikamaru's)

The two squads trekked a path across the rocky plains as the afternoon sun pelted them with its rays. Ino groaned in the growing heat. "This is ridiculous! It wasn't this hot earlier." She said. Shikamaru stopped and looked up at the sun with a hand covering his eyes. Kakashi looked over at Shikamaru and the others. "I think it's about time we take a quick break. What about you three?" He said to Sakura, Itachi and Kisame. Itachi's eyes passed Shikamaru with interest and the rest of his team. "I suppose so. Everyone will need their strength for what we have planned." He replied.

Hinata removed her backpack and took out some metal poles and a large tarp. "I brought along a rain cover, but we can use it here for shade." Lee stooped down and picked a piece. "Very nice Hinata, I will help." He said and went to work. Ino pulled some water bottles and tossed one to Kakashi and within moments their cover was up. Sakura stretched her arms laid down on the ground. "Ah, that's much better. I know it was going to be hot but even I have to agree with Ino. What do you think Kakashi-sensei?" She asked.

After he took an unnoticeable swig from the canteen and passed it to Kisame, Kakashi stared at Shikamaru with the same look that Itachi was giving him. "Why are you so captivated by the sky today Shikamaru?" He inquired. Ino propped herself up on her elbows and leaned back. She glanced up at the bright blueness and turned her head to Shikamaru. "I know you have a thing with gazing up at the clouds but there aren't any out today." She said.

Shikamaru barely heard her as his mind drifted away…

(One day ago, midmorning)

Everyone had gathered around a map to make their next move. Shikamaru was explaining his analysis of the situation. "Ok, after thinking about what you all know about Naruto's condition, I have some ideas as to how we get him back to normal as well as what we do further down the line.

"Let's look at the current members in our party for starters. You have a kunoichi with expert medical skills plus flawless chakra control, a jounin who is well-traveled and has more than a handful of techniques, and two S-class criminals made up of an Uchiha prodigy and an adept swordsman who wields a weapon that eats away at chakra. We have two kunoichi, one useful for scouting with Byakugan along with a powerful widespread defense and one useful for recon with the ability to take control of the enemies' minds and gather essential information, a taijustu specialist with high-speed capabilities, and a shirker tactician.

"Laying our talents on the table I can create a formation that can support these attributes and will prove most effective in our case, since we need speed. We'll be starting in two rows side by side. In the first pair will be Hinata and Kakashi. Hinata, for obvious reasons, will scope out the area and Kakashi can point out the best path we need. In second will be Sakura and Lee. In case of trouble, they will be used to take care of any natural obstacles with Sakura leading the front charge and Lee coming in to finish it, plus it should benefit for the whole of the team if we have the medic in the center if one of our people gets injured.

"Next up is Itachi and Kisame. Because you two are well known for your abilities, you'll be the assault against most enemies wanting either to steal from us or stand in our way. Last in tow will be me and Ino. My insight on the situation can give us the best idea on what to do next and I can hold off anyone coming at us from behind with my Shadow Possession justu followed by Ino's mind techniques. We will be back up on standby for anything that gets to nasty. In other conditions if someone gets hurt Hinata can see the damage done and Sakura can fix it. Another one would be if we have enemies in waiting ahead of us Ino can take care of them if we're close enough. Other ideas come to mind but the best thing to do is expect the unexpected and try to catch up with Naruto. What we do after that will come to later. " He finished.

Shikamaru put the map away and yawned. "Well, I'd say you've just thought about everything Shikamaru." Ino said. "That might as well be, but the one thing a good shinobi must always remember is that even in the best thought out plans, something can always go wrong." Itachi said. Kisame snorted. "Yep, I call it the fuck factor. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. Those, my friend, are words to live and die by." He said.

Shikamaru yawned again turned his eyes to the skies. The sun was past the point of dawn and the heavens still had a mauve look to them and there wasn't a cloud in sight. _Hmm…there's something…_ He thought. He stood up and brushed himself off. "Okay, how about we get moving? If Kisame is right Naruto will be in our sights soon enough but not if we don't catch him before he grabs a ship and ventures out to sea." No one said anything and they started off.

(Present time)

Shikamaru's sights remained on the skies. The area held an eerie tranquility to it that he didn't like. Something was itching at the back of his mind, something that told him they should start moving. Shikamaru! Hey, earth to Shikamaru!" Ino shouted. Shikamaru turned to stare at her. "What is it?" He asked. "We've been asking you what's so damn interesting about the sky, but you were gone for like five minutes." She said.

"It's something I noticed and it's been bothering me since yesterday. Take a long, careful look at the sky." He said. Everyone stared at the endless azure space. "I do not see anything." Lee said. "And therein lays the truth: nothing. There is an old wives tale about the sky. A clear sky come morning brings good luck. But a clear morning with a violet sunrise means trouble ahead. Ever since dawn of yesterday I haven't seen one single cloud up to now. Along with that I specifically remember the smell of rain on the wind the night before then, yet not a drop has fallen. It may just be me but I think something isn't right." Shikamaru clarified.

Itachi's eyes moved back to the sky and activated his Sharingan. "The boy's right. A powerful kind of genjustu has been placed over the entirety of the sky. My guess is it's meant to disorientate anyone caught in it and take them off course. It's fascinating; I have never come across one like this before. Give me a minute." Itachi closed his eyes and lowered his head. A minute came and went when he upturned his face and opened his eyes. The sky began to undulate and fade away. When it stopped clouds appeared, drifting on the air.

"Well there's that taken care of. Hinata, do a scan of the area to see if there is any change." Shikamaru instructed. She switched on her Byakugan and swept the environment and found only one difference. Off in the distance there rested an edifice temple lying in ruins and was the source of Shikamaru's uneasy feelings. "The genjustu appears to have been placed to cover that structure. But of what importance is it?" Lee wondered.

"Why don't we go and check it out then? I have a feeling that it might be worth the time." Itachi suggested. Kakashi turned his gaze onto the ruins. "I agree with you. Normally I try to avoid things like this, on the other hand when someone goes through that much trouble to disguise a wrecked building and everything around it, which means there's something worth hiding. It also means that it's worth finding." He added.

So against his better judgment Shikamaru sighed and got to his feet. "I guess so. It is on the way so it wouldn't hurt to see." Nobody said anything as they packed up and made for the odd building with curiosity. Shikamaru still had his doubts about it, questions that couldn't be answered. What was this strange place they were walking to? What was it doing in the middle of nowhere? And most importantly, why was it cloaked from prying eyes? It wouldn't take long for them to find out the reason they were being drawn toward it and their discovery will leave its mark on them to the end of their days.

**A/N:**I have to do this because I know someone will mention it soon enough: I apologize if my translations are off about the Onmyoji and the Shikigami. If they are please notify me and I will correct them as soon as possible, my skills are still a little rusty. Also I want to acknowledge Memphis for some more thought on the Vampire Judgment and where I could go with this chapter. I know you're reading this so I want to say thanks with that. And Nikoman, please, I know you have some thoughts on this. Give when you can! Anyway story's getting pretty good, I know some of you are thinking that, others are thinking I could use more work on them. That's cool and I respect that; a good story needs different opinions. If you have any you know what to do: FF reviews, DA comments.

P.S.: If anyone has any good ideas from otherworldly lore from anywhere, please throw that out there and I'll see if I can weave them in. Thank you and enjoy.


	9. Old Knowledge, New Deals

Old Knowledge, New Deals

(With Kakashi and Shikamaru's group)

After spotting the ruins, the lot of them crept their way towards it. Kakashi took point with Hinata right alongside her. Lee swiftly went from rock to rock coming in from the far right and Sakura from the far left. Shikamaru and Ino weren't far behind, staying some twenty feet away from Kakashi and Hinata, and Itachi and Kisame we nowhere to be seen.

If the building was impressive from a distance it was a sight to behold up close. Although the foundation was built close to the ground it was still larger than most. Beyond a short flight of stairs stood four imposing pillars holding the entrance up and above that there were layers of aged rock stacked atop one another high into the sky so high that Kakashi and Hinata had to strain their necks just to see the top. Resting at its peak was a pair of huge bronze hands reaching for the heavens and they appeared, at one time, to hold something in their clutches.

"What do you suppose this place is, or rather used to be?" Ino asked Shikamaru. He gazed upon the temple with an unnerving look in his eye. "The thing that comes to mind is that it's an abandoned temple from way before our time, but something like that shouldn't be here, surrounded by nothing but a wasteland of stone and of such size. If I am right, then the thing that's been bugging me should be right too." He answered. "What do you mean? Is it really so odd that there's something like this out here?" She said with doubt laced in her voice.

"If it was on a map than I would have believed it to be an old monument of sorts. Think about it logically, anyone with half the talent that Itachi has would have noticed the genjustu and found this place too. I find it suspicious when we find something like this, and none of us know a thing about it? No, something is definitely wrong." He replied.

Kakashi placed a hand on his communicator. "Is everyone at their positions?" Shikamaru's voice sounded off. _"Just waiting on you two."_ "Good. Hinata, are you ready?" She nodded and gulped out of nervousness. The duo walked up the steps, entering the ruins.

There wasn't much to look at. Moderate-sized piles of rubble were scattered about the floor leaving holes in the ceiling to act as skylights. The ground was laid with loose bricks and gave the look like it would collapse even at the slightest application of pressure. At the center stood a large pedestal with the remains of a statue with missing parts no doubt added to the slowly growing debris. At the far end was an archway with a stone tablet, untouched by time and was perhaps the only part of the building that wasn't in shambles.

"It would appear that Shikamaru was right on the money but the place is so wrecked I can't tell what kind of temple it is. It should be alright for everyone to enter. Follow the plan just in case." Kakashi said through his communicator. _"Understood."_ Shikamaru replied. Kakashi inspected the statue with interest while Hinata studied the walls and ceiling with her Byakugan.

The two were soon joined with Sakura and Lee, their eyes wide with awe at the sights. "Whoa, seeing all of this at our present time makes me wonder when it was constructed." Lee said, bemused. Sakura patted him on the shoulder. "Come on, you and Gai-sensei must have been all over the map by now. Gawking at ancient ruins like a bumpkin in a big city doesn't seem like you at all." She giggled.

"I know. I spoke with Shikamaru on our way here and he told me a theory he had, though he didn't say what about. I have a feeling that we will find out shortly. I mean it _is_ Shikamaru." He said.

"Do you see anything that looks alarming or dangerous, Hinata?" Sakura asked. Hinata shook her head. "Nothing yet, it looks just like an ordinary temple. The foundation is constructed out simple limestone with traces of an element I don't recognize. I'm also detecting something radiating from the stone tablet based at the far-side of the room. I don't know how to explain it, really." She said with an air of anxiety around her.

Kakashi examined the slab which depicted three carvings: the first on the left stood a man with animals around him, all of them carrying orbs in their mouths and balls of fire floating about. The second on the right showed a powerful looking dragon and two elderly men, one carrying a bag over his shoulder and the other holding a drum with a wolf standing alongside him. In between them was a great bat engulfed in flames with fiery claws reaching up for the sun, covering all in its shadow.

_What is this, this sense of unease? Why would something like this be in an old temple?_ Kakashi thought. "Hey, come and take a look at this." He called to the others. While he, Sakura and Hinata were inspecting the ruined archway and it's tablet, Lee eye's traveled everywhere else from the roof to the pillars and finally over the entrance where he saw a peculiar sight.

"I believe we may have a problem. We are no longer alone." Lee warned the others and unconsciously put a hand on his weapon pouch. All eyes went to Lee then passed from his to the direction he was looking at. There was an old woman walking in with a cat at her side.

The room filled with tension in an instant and thick enough to cut with a knife, for how was it that an elderly civilian could enter a guarded building that was mysteriously hidden not too long ago from such skilled ninja, and in the middle of nowhere? Kakashi whispered into his communicator, "Ino, Shikamaru, why aren't you two watching the temple entrance?" _"What are you talking about? We are watching it? Why, what's going on?"_ Ino responded. "There's an old woman and she has a cat with her coming through the entrance."

Shikamaru edged pasted the rock he was hiding behind for a clearer view. "Where did she come from? She couldn't have gone past us or we would have noticed." He gasped. Ino turned to him. "Should we do something about her?" She inquired. Shikamaru put a hand to his chin in thought. "No. Let's hold off and see how this plays out. If necessary we can always use plan B. Do you hear that Kakashi?"

"Fine then, understood." Kakashi confirmed.

The old woman was as ordinary as they came. She donned a light-blue robe with a white sash wrapped around her body from her right shoulder to the left side of her waist. In her right hand she held a knobby cane that looked even older than the temple. The feline was gray with a pure white streak with triangle-shaped markings on each side running down its back.

Her eyes went from each person, stopping at Kakashi. When she talked her voice was as you would expect coming from an elderly person. "My, my, it's so rare for this place to get visitors. From where do you hail from, if you don't mind my asking?" She said.

Everyone hesitated; no one was sure what to say. Then Kakashi, first bowing out respect and carefully choosing his words, spoke. "We come from the Hidden Leaf Village born in Konoha. My name Kakashi Hatake and these are my teammates. We are presently on a mission to find our friend. Can you tell me if you have seen anyone pass through here?" He said.

The old woman smiled. "Oh how nice. Mannerisms are such a rarity to see these days. Not too long ago a young man did in fact come by. He rested for a while and then was on his way. Is it possible that he's the one you seek?" She answered. Their eyes went from one another. _We must be catching up!_ Kakashi thought. "Was the young man that you saw tall and have yellow hair and blue eyes?" He asked. The old woman rubbed her head in thought. "No, not particularly; this one was tall but he had black hair like a raven and carried a sword on his back. His eyes were a strange sight. They were red with markings I couldn't see very clearly."

Sakura's eyes widened in shock at the description she heard. _That sounds like Sasuke! What's he doing in a place like this?_ "How long was it that he was here? Can you please tell us?" She pleaded. The old woman did nothing but gradually walked passed them. "Before I answer your question, I would like you to hear a tale of sorts. Humor an old woman if you will.

"There was once a young beautiful girl right around your age young pink haired one. She had a loving family with a mother and a father and a sister, as well as a love of her own: a handsome man, brilliant and talented and brimming with promise. Over time the two lovers grew closer together until their love could not be denied." A sad smile replaced the one before and she stopped in front of the tablet.

"One day the man asked the girl to marry him. Of course she accepted her heart filled with joy at the thought of being with the one she loved for the rest of her days. Not long after they were married and lived with each other for many years. On one such year the woman's husband fell ill from the unforgiving winter season.

"Of course the woman did everything she could to help her husband. When the man was on his death bed and the woman had almost lost hope she remembered a story of a hermit that lived nearby and was rumored to have powers that could help her husband. She tended to her lover one last time and then headed out to find the hermit."

Back outside Shikamaru and Ino could hear every word. _Jeez, I hope this story has a point to it. I'm about to fall asleep just hearing it._ Shikamaru thought. Ino leaned in to whisper. "I don't get it. She doesn't seem like a threat, so why is everyone so tense?" She asked. Shikamaru gave her a look to keep quiet as he listened in.

The old woman reached in her robes and pulled out a small pipe and lit it. She took a short drag and continued with her tale. "A day had passed before she found the hermit in a cave with glowing plants hanging from the ceiling. She found the hermit, a man covered from head to toe in rags so she couldn't tell what he looked like, she could barely tell that it was a man because of its voice.

"'Why have you come here?' The hermit said to the woman. She told him her plight and asked for his help. 'I will make so you can be with your loved one, but you must give me something in return.' The woman said she will give him whatever he so desires that is within her power. 'Take one of the plants that hang from the roof of this cave and boil its leaves for the nectar they possess has the power to cure your husband. But you must hurry; they only have the power to cure while they still glow and once plucked, the glow will fade and the cure will turn to poison and kill your husband.'

"Without a second thought the woman took one of the luminescent vines and hurried as fast as she could to her husband, all the while keeping an eye on the plant. When she got home fortune smiled on her as she found her husband still alive by some miracle. She did as she was told and gave him the nectar from the boiled down plant.

"For the moment it looked like the nectar had cured him. He turned healthy and lively and the woman slept peacefully believing everything would be fine. But come morning the woman woke to find that her husband had died in his sleep. She went back to the hermit and demanded an explanation. 'I gave you what you wanted; your loved one was cured. I merely took what was rightfully given. I told you that you would be with your loved one, you did not say for how long your time together should be. Now leave and do not come back or death shall be what you find.'"

"In a rage she took out a dagger she always carried and took the hermit's life. When she unbound the man she discovered that the hermit wasn't a man at all, but an inhuman creature she couldn't identify. From that day on she was cursed to walk the earth, living out her days miserable and heartbroken."

"That's horrible, for something like that to happen to someone. It's too cruel." Hinata said. "I can't disagree with you there. The world is a cruel one, where the lives of the innocent, young or old, are nothing more than playthings for the wicked to use as they see fit." The old woman replied. "It's true that bad things sometimes happen to people who don't deserve it." Kakashi's hand went to his left eye as his thoughts went to his fallen comrades.

The old woman put her pipe away and stared at Kakashi with a look he didn't like. "Yes that's very true. It's also true that people do what they must to survive when necessary." She snapped her fingers and pieces of rubble started flying at them. No one had enough time to react as the rocks piled on and began to compact and solidify, imprisoning them. "What the hell is this!? How are you doing this?" Sakura demanded.

The old woman laughed maliciously and her mouth opened so wide it threatened to split her head open. "Allow me to finish the story. The woman was cursed alright, cursed to spread her misery and make others suffer as she has suffered, and in her darkness a demon was born; a demon who feeds on those who are unfortunate enough to cross paths her in their lifetime."

While they struggled against their stone prisons, Ino and Shikamaru were running towards the temple to give aid. As they were about to enter they were stopped by the old woman's cat. It hissed at them and right before their eyes it transformed. It grew bigger, its tail grew longer and became split, fangs and claws sharper and stronger until it become a seven-foot long beast with a forked tail. "Come on, it's just one cat. We need to help the others." Ino said frantically.

"I have a feeling we won't be able to." He said. Shikamaru groaned. _Where are they? We could use the help right now._ He thought. The beast sat where it was and stared at what could be its next meal. It opened its mouth and instead of a growl words come out. "You will wait here until Mistress Baba is finished, or else you will deal with me." Ino's jaw hit the floor. "That thing can talk!?" She screamed. "What are you?" Shikamaru questioned the monster.

Its bright beige eyes turned to Shikamaru. "I am called a bakeneko. My name is Mata and I am a servant of the Demon Witch Baba. She has used this temple to lure in curious wanderers to devour. Anything she cannot eat I take care of and right now you two would fall neatly into that category." "I've been through all kinds of books and I remember everything I read, and not once have I come across anything like you." Shikamaru stated.

Mata's face contorted into what could be designated as a smile. "It would surprise me if you did. There are so very few humans who even know of us. The most popular of our kind you know as the tailed beasts. But there are more, so many more of us of many shapes and sizes. The world has more in it than you realize, things that you should never bear witness to. Only now it's too late for you and your friends, my mistress's powers are far stronger than your skills." He said.

"Are you sure about that?" A shadow appeared above Mata and a figure landed on him before he had a chance to move. Mata, about to retaliate, was stopped by a bandaged weapon. Shikamaru smirked. "Well, better late than never I suppose. A little earlier would've been nice to." Kisame flashed his pearly whites. "Sorry about that. Itachi wanted to see how much he could get out of this one. I have to admit kid, I knew we would be used to take care of the enemy, but I didn't think it would be something this interesting. I might just stay with you guys if I wasn't a wanted fugitive." He said.

Kisame leaned in closer to Mata's face. "Why don't we take a look at your mistress and see how she's doing, shall we?" The three of them entered the temple with Shikamaru using his Shadow Possession justu to keep Mata under control. Baba was about to consume Hinata first when she saw the others along with Mata. Kisame took one look at her and laughed. "Ha, and I thought the blond kid had a big mouth on him! I'm sorry to spoil your meal, but we have to talk. My comrade believes you can be of use." He enlightened Baba and to her astonishment found a kunai at her throat and three shuriken digging at her back.

"I have a bargain I wish to make with you, Baba." Itachi said. Baba's face changed from bewilderment to one of greedy curiosity. "Well now, if it isn't the young Uchiha prodigy? It has been a long time. How have you been?" She asked her face turning back to normal. "Other than the fact that almost my entire clan is gone and my little brother wants to kill me, life's not bad." He replied.

Kakashi was dumbfounded. "You two know each other?" Itachi removed the weapons from Baba. "In a matter of speaking, yes I know her. It was from her I discovered the information about the tailed beasts years ago. To explain, Baba is a demon hag who indeed eats people foolish enough to come by her. Each time she does all of the memories and knowledge that her victims possess, she absorbs and makes all of it her own.

"It is known to those who know the existence of Baba, know that she _can_ be reasoned with if you're willing to strike a deal with her. A trade of sorts: she gives information and in return she demands sacrifices. We haven't been in touch for such a long time now I actually forgot all about her, so I say that this was fortunate for us. I have a special deal to make with you but first I need you to release them." He said pointing at her captives.

"If I knew they were with you my dear, they would not have been harmed." She snapped her fingers again and the rock dissolved into sand. "Now do you think you can release my pet? He's of no danger to you now." Baba insisted. Shikamaru looked at Itachi who gave the go-ahead and dropped the justu. Mata growled at Shikamaru but silently returned to Baba's side.

"Good, now we can get down to business. You said to had something special to offer up?" Baba said with a profound interest. "That's right. This one is special, because the payout will exceed everything you've asked for but in return I ask that you join us in our mission to the Light Country far in the north."

An inquisitive look passed over her face. "The Light Country is it? The same Light Country that houses the prison known as the Nine Hells would it? I've heard very disturbing things about that place recently." She asked petting Mata on the head. "That's the one. I have a feeling that we could use your help in getting there and getting out if required." He answered. "And this "payout" you described? What makes you think that it will be worth my time?"

Itachi smiled and countered, "Because of some new information me and Kisame obtained while we were there, regarding something of precious value to someone of your…experience. Not to mention all of the "sacrifices," you can find there, ripe and fresh for anyone to take. Do we have a deal?"

Baba stopped stroking Mata and reached for her cane that she dropped in all the excitement. Grabbing the top she pulled and it came off. The inside was hollow save for a rolled up piece of paper. She pulled it out and unrolled it, presenting it to Itachi. He took his kunai, cut his thumb and wiped the blood in one stroke. When he did the paper glowed red and more writing appeared, showing a signed contract.

"Itachi Uchiha, you have a deal. You will have the support of me, my knowledge and all manners of creatures I call upon. But should I be cheated I will have your life in place of my prize. You understand of course?" Itachi bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Yes Baba." Baba put the paper back in her cane and Lee, who was the only one still covered in dust, spoke up to Baba.

"Now that we are working together I was thinking of something that may have been on everyone's mind. The carvings on the tablet, of the man and the bat and the others, what do they mean?" He questioned. Baba looked upon said stone. "It is hard to explain, but it may make sense later down the line." Itachi shook his head. "For the first official piece of business, what will be facing now that we have your aid? Tell me everything." He said.

Baba smiled her wide smile and told them a great deal of things, all the while the most important one that Shikamaru heard Mata say. _The world has more in it than you realize, things that you should never bear witness to._ "What did he mean when he said that? I can believe that there are more of these things existing in our world, but what else could there be?" He said to himself with all new concerns in his thoughts.

**A/N**: A little longer than usual but some things needed to be explained. Cyber cookie to whoever can tell me what the tablet really means. I want to point something out to Caitlin who in turn pointed out something to me. Itachi as powerful as he is will have a different role to play than just be an epic ass kicker like a prodigy should be. He, and some of the others, will have some awesome fight scenes in the future, just not yet. I have to think it out like everyone else does.

Another one is that the Kyuubi isn't demonic enough. While it is true that the Kyuubi is a blood hungry spirit of death, I made her out to be less than such because of two things: one is the most notably obvious, is the fact that Naruto and Yunika are holding back a nuke sealed away inside of him (evil laughter). The second is because I am holding her back for an essential scene in the future where I will show her true colors and she just rapes and kills for a time. You are welcome. Read & review as always.


	10. Let's get Demonic

Let's get Demonic

(Late afternoon, with Naruto)

Naruto was hiding behind a small hill, his eyes just peeking over to see a farm. A red barn with its doors wide open leading out to a fenced-in area holding in goats and a house off to the side.

Naruto sighed out of boredom and impatience. "What are we doing waiting here like this?" He said. _"You need to work on the Vampire Judgment technique. We have a goat farm ahead of us. You do the math."_ Yunika replied with an equal level of ennui. "So we're going to practice on goats?" He said. _"Would you rather practice on humans?"_ Her voice heavily layered with sarcasm. When Naruto didn't respond Yunika sighed. _"Are you still upset about earlier?"_ Naruto was still silent as his thoughts were elsewhere…

(Three hours ago)

Naruto was with Yunika inside his mindscape, him leaning against the bars and Yunika inspecting the back seal for new cracks.

"Okay, first stage is done: master basic control over draining chakra from an established chakra link. The second stage is to reproduce the same effect, but with something that doesn't have an established chakra link with me nor have actual chakra of its own. So how do I manage that?" Naruto asked.

"It's easier said than done. Humans have a chakra network interwoven into their bodies, active or not it can still be of use to us. For this stage to work you must be in physical contact at all times while using the justu until a connection is made. The advantage is you won't have to seek out the chakra as it floats around in the atmosphere. The downside is you must make a link with an alien body." She told him.

Naruto thought about how he could accomplish this and as he did he was watching Yunika. Ideas sparked up and were shot down while one repeated itself over and over, one that's been on his mind since he first laid eyes on her in her human form.

Yunika stepped back from her assessment. "Some new cracks have appeared on the seal but none of them are a serious threat. We should still have enough time to get to the sword and fix it with plenty of time to spare." She approached the cage bars and saw Naruto was troubled. "What is it? What's wrong now?" Naruto entered her cage and took a deep breath.

"Let's get something straight. I've been thinking about everything that's happened so far and I don't like this, any of this. The fact that I'm carrying a demon inside me, the fact that said demon who, out of hatred and spite, locked away an incredible amount of power that is now threatening to level a good ninety-percent of the continent, and the fact that I can't remember any of that happening to me." He confessed.

Yunika said nothing, her face jaded. He grabbed her shoulders and forcefully but gently shook her. "I need to know why I can't remember anything about you or the power you have. I remember beating that boy Haku to a pulp from when I was twelve. I remember practicing with Pervy Sage and scarring him when we left the village to train for three years. I even remember going against Orochimaru and giving him a run for his money. But when it comes to you or how I did it, I draw a blank. Now tell me why that is."

Yunika was silent like a graveyard as she matched stares with the agitated blonde. One look in his eyes told her he wasn't just simply concerned, deep down he was terrified, and she felt strange that she could tell. "It was necessary." She answered. "Necessary? Why was it necessary before now?" Naruto demanded.

Yunika pushed his arms off. "It was necessary for my peace. After everything I went through with the other hosts, even when I was out, all I wanted was to be left alone. When I was sealed away it was to contain my power and to be used as a weapon of war. I couldn't see or hear anything and on the briefest of moments I could speak with my 'jailers,' they didn't say many pleasant things. But when the 4th Hokage sealed me into you, it was different.

"I watched every hour, every minute of your life go by from day one to this very second. I saw your hardships and your achievements, how hard you worked. When you went up against that Haku boy, when you saw your teammate fall, I saw a side of you I never thought I would see: a burning hatred, a monstrous blood lust, in a flash of time you showed the world my pain, my anger unleashed in all its fury. When that happened, the seal cracked under the pressure of your emotions and a tenth of my power came out, resulting in your victory.

"When the seal cracked you entered my prison for the very first time. When you did I placed a justu on you so when you left you would forget everything that happened. More times you tapped into my power and more times to entered my prison, all events forgotten. But when this problem came up I decided not to erase your memory. Don't mistake what I did for your sake. Everything I did, I did for my survival." She said.

Naruto was stunned. "So there are parts of my memory that are gone?" "It's more like they're locked up. When you left the memories stayed behind and I put them away in the only place I could." She said turning towards the weakening seal.

Naruto went to the seal and placed a hand on it. "So the more it breaks, the more memory I'll get back." He muttered. Yunika stared at him as the silence went on. Naruto turned and gave her a pleading look. "I may not have gone through what you did Yunika but I can tell when something is wrong. What else aren't you telling me?"

She opened her mouth to speak, stopped herself to gather her thoughts and when she did speak, she did so with a restrained vehemence. "When you first used my power I saw a dark side I've never seen again since that day, but it tells us something: the fact that I saw it means you still have it. I say this merely as a warning. You have something about you that can become infectious to others. You have power, more power than you know and you will only get stronger. If that darkness should ever take hold of you again…"

(Present time)

Naruto stood up from his hiding spot and made hand signs. "Let's get to it. **Shadow Clone Justu!**" He said and summoned a clone. _"What, now?"_ Yunika's voice sounded surprised. "You said it yourself; we don't have a lot of time to waste. **Demon Style: Vampire Judgment**." He drained the chakra from his clone and transformed. He closed his eyes and willed her essence to merge with his mind. "**Demon Style: Demonic Ascension**." He called out.

When his hand changed into claws and the world turned into a light show, Yunika's voice resonated with his thoughts. _"Demonic Ascension, hmm?"_ _"Yeah, I chose that for when we mesh minds and I have the other technique going. Now give me a minute to get into position."_ Naruto sprinted from his spot and made for another small mound decreasing the distance with each dash.

Less than thirty seconds passed and he was in the waning shadow of the barn, watching the luminescent phantom lights. _"I count fourteen_ _goats here, seven smaller animals in the barn, possibly mice, and… three people in the home. The scent of hay is strong and there's a coffee and food scent coming from the house. From this I can guess that the owners won't come out for a while."_ Naruto thought to her. _"Okay that's good. How do you plan to attempt this?" _She asked.

"_I have most if it thought up. I'm just trying to figure out one part. Let me try something."_ He crept up on one unsuspecting goat. The animal spotted him and gave him a dull look as it chewed up some grass. Naruto put a finger to his mouth for the universal sign of silence. He held out his right hand and advanced on the beast. The dull look kept on and then it turned away.

Naruto placed his hand on the goat and focused. His hand glowed blue with chakra and stayed that way for about five minutes. Five minutes and ten seconds later he stopped in frustration. _Nothing is happening! What am I doing wrong?"_ He thought. He tried again and nothing happened. Three more times he tried and three more times he failed.

He put his hand on the goat again when Yunika stopped him. _"Before you try again, I have an idea that might help"_ She offered and Naruto paused. _"I'm listening." "The streams of light you see coming from everywhere and everything, look at them again. Study all of them and tell me what's different." _Naruto's gaze moved from the house to the barn and each one of the goats. His eyes became fixated on the one closest to him.

A misty white glow emanated from the animal and he looked at the one next to it. This one was a dark shade of green. _"The colors of their life auras, they're different. What does that have to do with anything?" _ He thought.

"_When a chakra link is made there isn't just the two beings the one who made the link and the one they connect to, there's also a medium involved. A medium is what helps the link truly connect when a specific offering has been given. One form of this is the summoning contract. In order to summon you need to do the proper hand signs required and blood, then you think about the creature you want. The contract acts as the medium and from there, acquires said creature from its current spot to where you are. Here you need a different medium for the same purpose. _

"_Not everyone has chakra but they do have life auras. Like I said before, life aura is the soul essence of a living thing. Chakra is the combined form of energy used to train the body and use justu. Life aura is the ethereal energy that all living creatures have. Chakra and life aura are one and the same in a sense; when you run out of chakra and overexert it you die and when you lose your life aura you die."_ She explained.

"_So what you're saying is that essentially I can use life aura to make the link?" _He guessed. _"Nail on the head. Life auras are always a different color, none are ever the same. But some come close and those that do usually go well together and when they do they make a link of their own. In theory if you can find one that comes close to your life aura color and try the technique, it should succeed." _

Naruto looked down at his hands for the color of his life aura. It was a brilliant hue of deep-red. _"Red. Okay, what comes close to red?"_ He looked at the goats for anything in the color spectrum that would work but to his disappointment none of them did, so he simply tried all of them. After an hour passed he removed his hand from the last goat and fumed. _"Nothing is working! I can't move on to the next stage if I can't beat this one."_ Naruto grumbled.

He sat down and crossed his arms in thought. He tried to think up a way he could go around, find a loophole of some kind. _"Chakra…life aura…chakra…life aura…they are separate and still the same…"_ The words kept rolling around in his head so much that Yunika got a headache. _"Chakra…life aura…human…demon…"_ His eyes flapped open as a spark went off in his brain.

"_You said that the two are similar in the way that people, ninja, need them right? Is it possible that they can change or be changed by an influence? Kind of like how I can use your chakra along with mine."_ He asked her. Yunika thought carefully about it, pondering every detail she could think up. _"I don't see why not. I've been thinking about a way that might work, but you aren't going to like it."_ She thought with an odd tone of satisfaction, which was becoming quite common for when she had something nasty in mind for him.

"_What, what am I not going to like about it?" _He thought to her now getting anxious.

"_Bite the goat."_

He was so surprised he spoke aloud. "What?! You want me to bite a goat?! Why the hell would I do that?" He exclaimed. In his stupor he forgot about the people inside the home and when sounds started coming from there he hid behind the barn again and waited. When no one came out he started breathing again. _"Are you done with your ranting?" _ Yunika thought at him.

"_Sorry, in my freaking out I must have forgotten about you wanting me to BITE A GOAT! Do you want to tell me why I need to bite a goat?" _He responded. _"It's an idea, a long shot mind you but still an idea. It's hard to explain but go with me on this. Bite the goat with your fangs and I'll take care of the rest."_ She ushered him.

"_Fine damn it fine, I'll do it but I'm not going to enjoy it."_ Naruto grabbed the one with the white aura and put a hand over its mouth to keep it quiet, then taking it into the barn he went to the far corner. _"Okay I have it here, now what?" "Bend its neck back and bite it there. It won't matter if you hit an artery or not, just don't kill it."_ She told him. He did as he was told, took one more look back at the open doors, swallowed to keep his lunch down, and bit the goat on the neck.

Instantly the beast tried calling out and struggled against Naruto's grip as blood started flowing out, but he was firm as was his bite. _"Whatever you were planning on doing, do it now. I can't hold this thing for very long without hurting more than I have already."_ He hurriedly thought. Little did he know Yunika was already doing it for not a few seconds later it stopped thrashing around and was still. Through Naruto's eyes he saw the life aura of the animal slowly start to change from white and darken to red.

Sensing that was his cue he tried the justu again and put his hand on the goat. Nothing happened at first then a small surge of energy came rushing out and he absorbed it. _"What did you do?" _He thought while he focused on how much he drained. _"You can let the beast go now. The idea I had was to find a sort of symmetry between your chakra and the goat's life aura. I acted as the medium for your will to take your chakra and change the goat's life aura with it so both life auras matched, therefore allowing the justu to take effect."_ She said.

Naruto unclamped his jaw from the goat's neck and it didn't move. _"Will the goat be okay after this?" _Naruto wondered. _"It should be fine. It didn't bleed out much so it will live and more importantly you've managed a big leap in the second stage of mastering this justu. The point I was trying to make was you needed to learn how to use the technique on something that didn't have chakra and find a way to convert its energy into chakra. The real purpose here was for you to learn how to harmonize chakra and life aura with another creature, in this case a goat."_

Naruto took his hand away from the goat and it stirred like it just woke up from sleeping. It gave Naruto the same blank stare from before and ran back outside. _"Now that we have that part done, how about we get moving? Don't want to be seen by the owners looking like you do now, do you?"_ Yunika considered. _"I'm with you on that one. Time to get back on track!" _He replied and after taking a cautious look around the farm he made for the north.

(Two hours later, dusk)

Naruto sat in front of a crackling fire, his eyes closed to enjoy the peaceful calm as he tried desperately to forget what he had to do. "I can't believe you had me bite a goat. That thing stunk something awful I'll have you know."He grumbled. Yunika was in hysterics. _"At least one of us enjoyed the lesson!"_ She said in between laughing fits.

"It seems like the only way to get you to show anything close to emotions is either when I piss you off or you make me do something disgusting at your dispense. It's probably the closest I've seen or heard you be human." Naruto said irately.

That comment stopped her cold. Naruto didn't notice even though he had been listening to her laugh it up since they left the farm. She was quiet for a bit and then said, _"Naruto, what do you know about demons?"_ _Why ask me that? Feels out of character for her…must have been something I said. _He thought to himself.

"Only what I know about the other tailed beasts." He answered. _"I thought as much. Humor me, have you ever wondered about where they came from or what they really are? What ever happened to them?"_ She asked with a sense of interest in her voice. "What is this, a moment of nostalgia coming over you? I don't think we should be focusing about stuff that for now." Naruto said coolly.

"_Maybe you're right. I do think that it's time to add something new to your repertoire, as a reward for putting up with today's…training abnormality."_ Yunika said trying to contain her growing laughter."Abnormality my ass, I bet you had that planned." He said irritably but was curious. When it came to justu Yunika had been helpful so far.

"_Now, now, save the attitude for later. You remember what I said about the chakra link and mediums correct?" _She asked and Naruto told her he did. _"When I explained about you turning into a demon sage and the powers that come with it, I left out a little nugget. Besides what I told you so far, they can also summon otherworldly creatures and I'm going to teach you how to do just that."_

Naruto looked up at the darkening sky. "Didn't you mention something like that? What did you call them, Shikigami right?" He pointed out. _"That's right but they come from a different class of beings you can control. What I'm going to teach you is how to summon a demon, using me as the medium."_

Now clearly paying attention, Naruto asked her a series of questions regarding how it was different from a normal summoning and what she meant by using her as the medium. _"It might take a while to explain so I'll make it short: it's the same way how you normally summon, except I'm needed for it to work. To summon a demon you need the right requirements for it and something of demon origin it will recognize, namely me. You will be summoning something simple, an old friend of mine from another time to be more accurate." _She clarified.

Yunika had him carefully go through the proper hand signs and when he could do them all perfectly she told him the last part. _"Now how you summon this one is simple. Do the hand signs and offer the blood like you always do, but don't slam your hand on the ground. Put it in the flames and call out the justu."_

Naruto stopped before he made any hand movement. "Hang on just a minute. I bit a goat earlier and now you want me to burn my hand? I'm not so sure about that." He objected. _"You'll be fine. I know I'm not the right one to say it, but you just have to trust me on this. I promise you won't get burned."_ She swore.

Naruto hesitated but did it none the less. He went through the hand signs, bit his right thumb just enough to draw blood and forced himself to put his hand in the blaze and called, "**Demon Style: Summoning Justu**!" Sure enough he didn't feel any pain. What happened next was very intriguing: thick black smoke started to rise from the flames. More and more it appeared until a cloud of it floated away from Naruto and stopping on the other side of the fire, then began accumulating, forming a man sitting with his legs crossed.

The man had dark skin like the smoke that made him up and long black hair tied in a ponytail. He wore a robe with the left side removed and Naruto could see various scars on his body. Worn sandals covered his feet gibing the appearance that he traveled all over the world. His face was also covered in scars; three vertical scars over his left eye, a long one starting from his right eyebrow and curved inward ending at his chin, and one more on his forehead in the shape of an X. His robe's colors seemed to constantly change, like it was alive; they went from ash gray to bright orange to its present color, hot yellow. The man's eyes were just as black as his skin.

His voice had a deep tone to it. "Who is it that calls me? Speak now." He said. "_Wow I can't believe that worked." _Naruto thought to Yunika. _"Why are you always surprised when something I plan works?"_ She said offended. _"Call me cautious. I like to learn new justu I just think it's weird. So what is he?" "He's called an enenra, a smoke demon who doesn't really have a name so I call him Enra, and he's a very old friend of mine."_ She said with a sound pride._ I didn't think demons had friends. _Naruto thought.

"_Okay, convey everything I tell you to tell him." _ She instructed. Naruto heard her out, his eyebrows rose a few times, and spoke to Enra. "I am Demon Sage Naruto Uzumaki, child of Konoha, warrior of the Hidden Leaf Village and host to the Kyuubi, of whom I speak for." Naruto repeated.

"Oh? How do I know that it's really her I'm talking to?" Enra asked warily. Naruto's eyes flashed red and turned back. "She says it's good to see you again Enra." He said.

Enra's coal eyes lit up and he smiled. "Ah Kyuubi, it has been far too long. The years go by so fast for me what I think is a day is really a year. And as for you boy, I didn't think the Onmyoji existed anymore. But enough of that, why have you summoned me?"

Naruto held up a hand telling Enra to wait. He grabbed his bag and rummaged around in it, pulling out a long piece of white translucent fabric. Naruto bowed his head and held it out to Enra. "Yunika says those in favor of a long overdue debt to be paid, have those to thank for when their time has come to free them of their burden and offers this as a token of trade." He relayed. _Talk about old school._

"She goes by Yunika now, does she?" Enra chuckled and studied the material with an experienced eye. "The offering is acceptable. However I must first inquire as to what you ask of me?" Naruto looked up at him. "My wish is for you to accompany me on my journey and aid me anyway you can." He said.

Enra didn't say much, but he took the cloth and draped it around his neck. "Only because it's you 'Yunika', I will help this boy and clear my debt with you. To honor this scarf I will give you a useful item." He reached in his robe and pulled out what Naruto that to be a sake bottle. "This is a kameosa bottle. It is a very special bottle because any liquid you put in this bottle will never run out unless you ask it to empty itself." He said and handed it to Naruto.

He smiled as he put the bottle in the bag. _"That should prove helpful, if it's real." _Naruto thought to Yunika. _"It's real alright. Enra carries all manners of things with him, some more helpful than others."_ She replied.

"I will travel with you as far as I can but there will be places I cannot walk. In such times I will change back into smoke and bind myself to this scarf you have given me. When I have done this you can communicate with me as long as you hold it in you possession. I can be summoned from any flame but if none can be made or found, use the scarf to call me to your side." Enra said.

Naruto nodded and removed the bag. "How about we get some shut eye? We'll need all the strength we can get." Enra agreed and laid back. Naruto mirrored Enra and placed his head on the bag. Closing his eyes the last thought he had rang through his mind like a single pure note in an echoing forest. _I wonder how Yunika knows Enra._

**A/N**: Okay definitely longer than normal and I probably rushed some things in this one but I think I made good time. I wanted to get both events in this chapter with the life aura and Naruto meeting Enra because they both have meaning to the story. For anyone who does there research kudos to you for knowing what Enra and the kameosa bottle was beforehand, and yes you can all safely assume I will be using numerous demons, spirits, yokai and other boogeymen. (Naruto wouldn't be a demon sage if I didn't) If anyone would like to challenge me about the theory of the chakra/life aura bit I put in feel free to do so. Read and Review.


	11. The Ways and Words of a Witch

The Ways and Words of a Witch

(Morning, with Kakashi and Shikamaru's group)

The dawning sun was shining over the grasslands, its rays landing on a dead fire pit in the center of an open dirt area. Everyone was getting ready for the day's journey. Hinata, Sakura and Ino were checking inventory, Lee and Mata were keeping watch, and Shikamaru, Kakashi, Itachi, Kisame and Baba were in the middle of going over the map.

"So far we're making good time. Right now we're here near the edge of the grasslands and we should make it to any of the port cities within less than a day's run. Naruto should be in the vicinity of this area so it's a high probability that we'll run into him before he tries to cross the ocean. Baba can explain the next part." Shikamaru explained pointing to a spot on the map.

"There are three port cities that have routes to the Light Country: one to the northeast, and two to the north and northwest. The one we want is at the northeast, located in a small outcast harbor. I know one of the harbormasters there and he owes me a favor. Long story short, I'm the reason he still has a marriage. He can give us a private boat to the Light Country, simple." Baba said. The other four looked at her with the same thought running through their heads: _I don't want to know._

Itachi looked back at the kunoichi trio while they talked amongst themselves. "While we're discussing the matter of information Baba, maybe you could tell everyone what you know about Nine Hells prison. You mentioned before that you heard some disturbing rumors surrounding the facility. Anything and everything you can tell us would give us an advantage in case a scenario comes up, forcing us to make a necessary retreat." He said.

"Very well, does someone have a large sheet of paper, four items that are flat and heavy, and something to write with?" Baba requested. Shikamaru had a pencil, paper and four shuriken and handed them to her. Baba took the shuriken and used them to hold down the sheet. Next she turned the pencil point down in her hand and slowly pushed it into the dirt. She placed her hand above it and, after muttering some words, pulled it out and began drawing on the paper. When she finished it showed a rough draft of what Shikamaru described as the Light Country.

"To begin, the rumors I heard about this place aren't very pleasant. From what young Shikamaru here has told you all about the island, everything is straight on. The Light Country looks like a paradise in the eyes of the unsuspecting world, run by the current lord of the land. However in reality it is under harsh dictatorship, ruled by Goturo with an iron fist and falsifies all information regarding Nine Hells prison as he passes it on to the lord.

"Along with funding from the numerous nobles of the world and other political officials, Goturo takes money from the island's people. When they don't pay, or they hold out, he 'releases' one of the prisoners unto the public until they gave everything they had, then he recaptures the prisoner. As a result they live in a chaotic and corrupted state of fear and poverty."

While she talked the picture shimmered and moved around in sync with her explanation. The picture changed from the outline of the island and zoned in on the prison structure allowing everyone to see it in clear detail. _Now that's something useful. I wonder how she did it._ Shikamaru thought.

Baba continued, "For the prison itself it's a nasty piece of work. The outside has seven elevated harpoon guns capable of puncturing through the toughest hull with tags attached to them for precision chakra control strings connected to whoever's manning the weapon, allowing them to change direction in midflight and five high powered cannons with chakra-empowered ammunition giving the rounds increased firepower for that little extra kick, all positioned on all sides of the prison walls. The only entrance in or out is a makeshift stone wall that becomes a temporary dock with any number of guards appearing on it.

"The inside is just as bad. While the five-foot bedrock that makes up the prison is strong it's the inside metal plating that can cause problems. When Nine Hells prison was created the stone that made up its structure and the metal that was made for it had special properties infused in it that turned every inch if it into one enormous security system. One of them steals the chakra and stamina from people that bear a mark the guards brand the prisoners with, to an extent. For transporting the criminals there are two means of traveling through the structure: a pair of steel hydraulic platforms with four guards that run through its entirety, even to the warden's office located at the very bottom.

"Each level holds all kinds of S-rank criminals who have high degrees of skills and powers, some of which you may have never heard of. They may be all S-rank but when placed in Nine Hells prison, they are put in a new system that rates them not for how dangerous they are, but for how long it takes to 'acquire' them. The longer it takes, the farther down they're placed and only the worst of them are put at the very bottom.

"Each prison cell is made to perfectly inhibit the occupant's power and restrict them as much as possible, making them as harmless as the breeze drifting across your face and their cells are made differently for each one. Each level has a different form of security measures as well, based on how they will affect the prisoners and how much of a threat the prisoners become, ranging from nerve gas to who knows what and I don't even want to know what's waiting at the bottom. The most curious part is that supposedly, this was all before it underwent…certain renovations." She finished.

Shikamaru groaned and put a hand to his face. "Okay, I don't about you, but that makes me worry a little. I'm going to assume you don't know what these new renovations are, which means we're back in the dark." He said. Itachi glanced at the drawing. "What interests me is how you know all this and how you made the picture come alive. You weren't imprisoned there were you?" He asked. Sakura came over and handed her report of the inventory to Shikamaru.

Baba cackled heartily. "Oh no, if I had been imprisoned there you wouldn't be talking to me now. I merely have fingers in a lot of pies as the phrase goes. The picture coming to life is easy to understand, it's just a simple spell. Magic, you see." She said. Sakura's ears twitched at the mention of the word as she just now entered the conversation.

"What's magic?" She asked now seeing the drawing move around. "That looks like Sai's justu. Sai is a teammate of ours and he uses justu that brings whatever he draws to life." She said. Baba removed the shuriken and rolled up the paper. "Magic is the word for the universal mystic energy that surrounds us all. I can utilize different types of magic because I'm attuned to it, seeing as I am a demon witch. For instance, I can use earth magic to affect the lead in the pencil and by connection, the drawing." Baba told her.

"Magic is very similar to justu. Our justu works by us utilizing the energies inside ourselves and using it to an extent whereas magic isn't confined to how much chakra we have and can influence the world around us when we become connected to it in some way." Itachi explained stoically. "It's good to know you still remembered what I taught you those many years ago." Baba said. Itachi shook his head. "I never forget anything I learn Baba. Maybe it's you who have forgotten, hmm?" He replied.

Ino and Hinata joined Sakura carrying everyone's packs. "We need to pick up some things before we attempt to cross the sea. Unless Baba can conjure things out of thin air, we'll need to make a side trip, which will take up more time than we have." Shikamaru analyzed.

Baba reached over and grabbed the report. "If its food you need, that won't be a problem. As far as equipment goes, you're on your own." She said returning the report and the other items to Shikamaru. Baba grabbed her cane to help herself up and slammed it on the ground. She muttered more words and let go, leaving it standing by itself.

Roots started growing from the cane's base and it grew thicker and larger. Branches began to sprout from the knobs on top, spreading and growing. Everyone had to back away as the roots tunneled through the ground with such vigor Lee and Mata, who were standing a good fifteen yards away, turned in surprise to see what was making the noise. When it stopped changing it was in the form of a giant tree. High up in its branches were loads of fruits.

Lee and Mata joined the group once everything quieted down. "That is incredible!" Lee yelled his eyes glowing with amazement. Mata rolled his eyes, "You really think that's incredible? Something tells me you'll have a lot of learning to do while you're with us. Mistress Baba isn't just capable of using magic. She is also heavily knowledgeable in potions, poisons, healing treatments, etc. Something like this is simple in our eyes."

Mata jumped and climbed up to the higher limbs of the tree and broke off a thin branch that had a piece of the fruit with his mouth. He brought it to Baba, who plucked the fruit and handed it to Kakashi. It looking like an orange but it didn't feel like one. It was orange and tiny black dots could be seen covering the skin but the skin itself felt like glass. "What kind of fruit is this? Is it safe for humans to eat?" Kakashi looked at it like it was about to come alive and take a bite out of him.

"Oh hush now, it's perfectly safe. That's fruit from a tree hosting a kodama spirit. A kodama is a nature spirit that dwells in many forms of flora." Baba said holding the broken limb. She turned it over in her hands and tapped it twice against the ground and it changed back into her knobby walking stick.

"The spirit of a kodama is carried in this cane, one that I saved many years ago. The kodama live only as long as the trees they inhabit do and are very helpful if you can get on their good sides. You think this was something special," She asked him pointing at the new growth. "You have no idea what she can do if angered."

Sakura stared incredulously at the new cane Baba had. "The kodama is female?" She said. "This one is anyway. Humans can't see their true form because they can't live very far from their home or they wither away. For this one it's because she's young and quite fearful of people." Ino gave the tree a proper once-over and looked at the cane. "Does she have a name?" She asked. Baba held the cane up and rubbed the head of it. "Her name is Sengen and we've been with each other for a very long time."

Kakashi shrugged and told Hinata, Mata, Lee, Shikamaru and Ino to collect what they needed. While they did Sakura and Baba talked more about kodama spirits with Itachi explaining as best as he could. Kisame and Kakashi checked and rechecked everyone's weaponry. By the time everyone was done with their task it was nearing noon. Shikamaru did a personal inspection over everything and seemed a little satisfied.

"Our food supplies are good but as far as going on the offensive or the defensive goes, let's just say I hope we don't run into a whole lot of enemies anytime soon, which brings me to something I forgot to ask. Do you know any sort of battle magic or tactics, something that could be of use in the field for stealth or intense combat? The tree was a nice trick but I don't need to tell you that it won't be of much use for fighting off foes that may outnumber us." Shikamaru said.

"I know enough youngling. If I didn't I wouldn't be here talking to you right now." Baba simply put with her trademark wide grin. "That's something else I was thinking about. The large scale genjustu field that covered the temple, did you cast it or was it something else?" Shikamaru asked again. Baba looked at him with a newly found interest.

"I'm going to assume you know something about it, the temple's secret." Mata's eyes widened with shock at the statement and turned to his mistress with something like alarm. Shikamaru noticed this and thought to use it. "I listened in on Hinata as she scoped the place out. She talked about the foundation and the tablet, how there was something in them she couldn't identify. I didn't think of it much when you appeared. If I put together what I knew then and what I know now there's something that doesn't fit." He started.

"Not just that either. You mentioned something about a young man with black hair, a sword on his back and strange red eyes. Your description matches up with a certain person that we've been looking for, Itachi's brother in fact. Maybe you could explain what went down." He finished.

Baba was passive, her head leaning to one side in amusement and her hand slowly moving over Mata's fur. "What you saw wasn't genjustu. It was magic and not my own doing. The temple has a barrier covering a wide radius that keeps it out of sight. If it should ever be found and dispelled, the field is brought back up when the intruder's presence has gone. I'll tell you more about it later. The young man, like you he discovered he was caught in its grasp and he was able to nullify it and enter the temple. I wasn't aware of him until he walked up the steps.

"I've been around the world in my years but for the time being I decided to use the temple as a baiting ground. I went through the same routine I did with you all but before I could make a move he told me he knew all about what I was and was only interested in making a deal with me. He wanted to know how many years the prison had been in use."

"Did he say anything about why he needed it?" Kakashi asked. Baba moved her head back and forth. "I asked if he had his head on straight, that nobody goes looking for me unless they're desperate or willing to pay the necessary price and he just tossed me a scroll." She reached in her robes and pulled out a black scroll with red bindings on each end and holding it in place of string was an iron ring with a seal on it.

"He said the scroll talks about some old secrets and that it should be enough for a single payment. Information for information, that's how the agreement works. It seemed good so I told him. The prison has been around for over a hundred years, a hundred-and-twenty to be precise. After that he ran off. I haven't been able to unseal it yet to see what's really inside, it really is unusual; it isn't a bloodline seal nor is it magical. I can't open it with my power but for the time being I believe it may be more suitable for one of you to hold on to it. Who knows, it may prove to be more beneficial to you than it has to me." She exhausted and held out the scroll.

"Are you sure you should be handing something like this over to us?" Kakashi asked. "A deal is a deal." She replied. Kakashi took the scroll and looked at the seal. _This is beyond me. It looks small but it's unlike anything I've seen. Whoever made this didn't want it anyone to get their hands on its insides too easily._ He thought wearily. "Itachi, I think this might be more up your alley of the weird." He tossed it to Itachi and Itachi examined it.

"Now, about the tablet…" Shikamaru started and Baba raised a hand to stop him. She poked her demon companion behind his ear. "Mata, please round up everybody and bring that strange boy with the large eyebrows." Mata dipped his head compliantly. Shortly after everyone was crowding around Baba and Lee was standing before her a blank look on his face. "You asked me before what the depictions on the tablet were. Since you are young and obviously willing to work with an old crone like me I'll tell you about it as best as I can." She started.

"The magic field wasn't just covering the temple it was also protecting the tablet. The tablet has magic that was ancient when I was young. If you look at it closely you would see that it's a part of something bigger; the edges are cracked as though someone broke it off something larger which means there is more of it though where the other parts are and how many exist are unknown to me. The piece residing in the temple speaks of a prophecy. Unfortunately the full meaning of it is unclear seeing as it is incomplete.

"The left side tells of a man with eerie powers lethal and dangerous. He is cruel and his heart incased in the deepest cold. He runs with unnatural creatures and wields a fabled weapon he uses to claim the souls of his next victims. His skills are unmatched even so that one day he will be known as the Kamikage, or the God's Shadow, not out of politics but out of fear; fear that he is Death Incarnate, the embodiment of demise itself. The man rides in and owns the darkness and he only cares about himself yet he searches for something and will have a choice to make.

"The right side speaks of three entities out of many that play a role in the man's future, each to come at different points in his life that will test the man's strength of character in hopes of diverging him from the path he chose out of hatred and to help him fight a great battle: two elderly men, brothers in arms since the day they were born, and a great dragon both wise and powerful.

"The one in the middle is the worst of the three. It talks of a fallen god who was banished and sent to Hell, cursed forever to remain in the abyss to rule over the devilish creatures of old. He yearns for freedom and covets revenge on those who cursed him by seeking out something called the Light of Five Presages and should he get his hands on it he will devour the world with the vehemence of his power. This is all the tablet says." She finished and took a deep breath.

Kisame whistled. "That sounds heavy. Personally I haven't been one to put money on Fate and all that." He said. Itachi looked at his comrade. "But what if it happened to be true? The oldest of legends do speak of such a power, the Light of Five Presages. It's unknown what it really is, but all of them have two things in common: the Light of Five Presages must first be called into physical manifestation and it can only be done so by certain requirements, one of them involves bringing together three impossible things. Every myth has a grain of truth to it." He said oddly enthusiastic.

Itachi's change in character made Kisame raise an eyebrow, "What brought this on all of a sudden? You're normally so apathetic about everything." He asked with his shark-like grin on his face. "Let's just say there was something I was interested in before I left Konoha and leave it at that for now." Itachi answered.

During the conversation Mata watched the sky and the movement of the sun. Halfway through Shikamaru and Lee joined him, Shikamaru for obvious reasons, Lee because he didn't understand what was being said. Mata looked down at Baba and spoke with urgency in his voice. "Mistress Baba if we do not leave soon we will not be able to catch up with whom they seek." Lee quickly turned his head. "You mean Naruto? I know we're behind him a ways but how can you tell by looking at the sun?" He asked in his stupor.

Mata returned his gaze to the heavens. "I was given a gift by my mistress when she first found me. I can look into the sun without burning my sight and use it like a crystal ball. I can see the shadows of every human in the world that the sun creates while it is high in the sky. I have found your friend as you described him. He looks different but I know where he is now. At the moment he is running through large grasslands not too far from here, and he has a companion with him." He told them.

"Who is it?" Baba said. Mata stood on his hind legs and whispered the name in her ear and Baba's eyes widened at the words. "We must hurry! We don't have any time to waste." She hollered and to everyone's surprise, jumped on Mata's back and rode him as he ran off. Nobody moved for a few seconds then the moment passed and they were all in a hurry to catch up with Baba, Ino and Sakura barely having time to gather their belongings before running after following them in frenzy.

The two of them caught up with Kakashi and almost ran into him at the breakneck velocity they were running at. "Kakashi-sensei, what do you think has gotten her so riled up?" Sakura asked in between breaths. "I don't know but anything that can aggravate an old witch like her may be something we can use in the future." He replied and ran after her as fast as he could.

**A/N:** Okay, to those who are with the story so far earlier I mentioned anyone trying to translate what the meaning of the tablet was. Some people got it others didn't. So I'm going to show you the guesses people tried. Prophecy and puzzle piece was a good guess, about three others said summoning slab, one got decoration. I want to thank th4n for helping with some details on the matter of where the fuck they are, so thank you. Next chapter I'll reveal more of Naruto's demon sage powers and we find out what else Enra has in his robe. Also we start on the sea voyage part of the story.

P.S. Memphis my old friend asked me in this chapter of where the story is going. To answer all questions this will be slightly off story line. The events will happen as they have happened in the canon, this one will just take place away from it and as I'm typing this I now realize I should have mentioned this earlier. Later on there will be a few time skips that will relay more about what's going on in the main world and what's happening on the shadows. Read & Review.


	12. The Makings of a Demon Sage

The Makings of a Demon Sage

(Afternoon, with Naruto)

Naruto stood on a white sandy beach with numerous rocks coating the shoreline. The smell of salt was overpoweringly so he could taste it on his tongue. Enra's scarf, which used to be pure white now had dark clouds on it, was wrapped around his neck. Naruto's eyes moved from one end of the beach to the other and smiled seeing nothing but more rocks, water and sand.

_Well, looks like I lost the wager._ He thought, his mind going back to when he and Yunika made the bet. Seeing that the coast was clear he removed the scarf and lightly blew on it. The clouds on it started to shift and floated off the fabric. They swirled around next to him and formed Enra. "It's a nice trick that I can just carry you around on a piece of silk." Naruto said. Enra stretched. "It helps when trying to be inconspicuous and I need a place to hide, but it does take its toll on the joints after a while."

Enra took a look around. "I see we made it to the ocean. Why call me out now? Are we not taking a boat across?" He asked. Naruto shrugged. "Beats me, I was wondering the same thing. Yunika thought it would be better if we took another route to the sword's location instead of taking a boat, something about people asking too many questions. Remind me again where it is we're actually headed, since no one really told me anything for the entire trip I've been making, except that I'm looking for a sword."

Enra put a hand into his robes. "I thought I explained it to you while you were walking. Our destination lies at an island in the north called the Light Country. The island has a prison at its center called Nine Hells prison which holds the object you're seeking. We must find the island, get inside the facility, sneak past the obstacles and acquire the sword so you can fix the weakening seal and save yourselves."

Enra pulled out a folded up piece of wood and a roll of twine with a hook attached to one end. He unfolded it which became a stick as long as his arm, tied the string around one end, found a good sized rock near the water's edge, sat on it, reached into his robe again for something Naruto couldn't see and put it on the hook. "As a smoke demon I can hang around any blazing fire and when I do I can eavesdrop and oh, the things I have heard. The fire works like a gateway but I can't go into the physical world unless someone calls me out like you did. I can also travel all over the world from fire to fire if I have the means to do so. It's one way how I know about the prison and a few other secrets."

With a practiced hand Enra cast his line into the sea. Naruto had a senseless look on his face and did nothing for a minute but stare at Enra.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked. Enra simply said, "Fishing." The silence carried on for another minute.

Naruto walked over to Enra's rock and looked out into the waters where Enra's line was. "Is fishing going to help us get to the island?" Naruto calmly asked. "It might." Enra answered. "How is fishing going to help us?" Enra planted the makeshift rod into the sand wedging it between two rocks and the one he was sitting on. "Find me a stick. Some driftwood will do." He told him.

Naruto search the beach for a half-hour and found a long thin piece of driftwood. He brought it back to Enra who nodded his thanks and started writing in the sand with it from where he was sitting. Naruto didn't recognize the hand and was silent the whole while. When Enra stopped Yunika spoke for the first time today. _"Let me have your arm Naruto."_ He switched to thought-speak. _"What do you need my arm for?" "I need it to respond to him. Enra is trying to speak to me using this method." _She said.

Naruto squinted at the lines until his head hurt. _"You can understand this gibberish?" _He asked her and her response to that was another wave of annoyance. _"It isn't gibberish, its demonic writing. Like me Enra is a lot older than he looks and even then he's much older than I am. He's so used to using this method it's become a way for us to communicate without humans knowing what we're talking about."_

Naruto reluctantly agreed and felt a strange sensation as his right arm moved on its own, clenching his fist and waving his fingers. _That's something new._ He thought. He removed the bag with his left hand and sat down next to Enra's rock. Using a finger Yunika wrote more illegible writing. Smiling that his old friend still remembered he waited for her to stop and then he would give his reply.

The sound of sand being moved around started to bore Naruto so he decided to pass the time with asking questions. "So Enra, how do you know Yunika, the whole thing with the debt and all I mean?" Enra took his time writing out his newest reply before he answered.

"In another time, a different time, she saved me from a most horrible death. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be here fishing and speaking with friends like I used to do." He said a smile on his face as he thought back to fond memories. "That sounds nice. What happened?" He asked. The hand Yunika was using came up and slapped Naruto in the face.

"Hey what was that for?!" He shouted at his hand now realizing how stupid that was. _"You shouldn't ask him something like that so casually. It's rude."_ She thought at him. Enra looked up at him. "It's alright Kyuubi. He is young, not unlike you were not too long ago. It's vital for the young to learn all they can." He said understanding what happened and returned to his writing.

"Time, is what happened. Time, which is the essential thing that affects us all, is what changed everything. What happened has happened and there's nothing that can be done to change that fact. But," He paused to take a deep breath. "I have made my dues with what has become of my existence." He said. Naruto could sense a faint contentment in his voice, a sound resolve telling of a man at peace with a tragedy that occurred long ago.

"No offense, but you seem different than what I would have expected out of a demon. I thought most demons hated humans." Naruto said. "Most of them do but it isn't their fault. They are spirits of dark emotions manifested in physical form. All they can do is hate." Enra said. Naruto thought about this and smiled when an idea popped into his head. "Okay, let's say I buy that, what are you then?" He questioned his left hand ready in case Yunika took offense.

A sly look made its way onto Enra's face. "I believe everyone is entitled to their secrets. I'm a smoke demon that loves fishing and meaningful conversation." He replied. Naruto chuckled and felt satisfied with Enra's answer. "I wouldn't have thought demons had philosophies." He said.

Enra set the stick aside and picked up his fishing rod. "Trust me my young friend, when all is said and done you will learn more about us than you can conceive to believe. That reminds me, you and I discussed the methods of the technique you're presently working on and the troubles you seem to be having with it." He said.

"The part you told me, about the biting and the life aura. It's a fascinating, also foolish way to get it to work in such a fashion, using Yunika as a medium to finalize the justu. Though I don't need to tell you this, but you will need to find another way around that as your opponents won't be as willing as the goat you used. Did you see any changes in the beast by any chance?" Enra probed.

Naruto flexed his hand when Yunika stopped writing with it, testing to see if control was his again. "It's like I told you before; when I bit the goat and Yunika did…whatever she did, it stopped thrashing around and stayed still. When I released the justu it ran outside. I didn't stay to see if anything else happened to it." Naruto explained.

"A good thing you did to. Demonic influences are a powerful force, not to be lightly reckoned with." Enra told Naruto seriously while poking him with the end of his fishing rod. "When you bit the creature it opened a door that Yunika could go through metaphorically speaking. It's been done before by other demons. When they bite someone they can leave some of their essence in the person and by doing so it can have very surprising effects on them."

"How does that work? Does that mean there's going to be a giant monster goat roaming around the place?" Naruto asked

Enra chuckled. "It's a possibility, but not a likely one. The alien presence works like a deadly virus as it spreads throughout the body, killing it while healing and altering it at the same time depending on how much of it is injected. There's also the factor of different types to take into account. Yunika's chakra for example can accelerate your healing process because she resides within you but if introduced to normal humans it will instead become lethal venom that will burn like liquid fire being poured into their veins and it will kill them if not tended to immediately."

Naruto's mind was nagging at him about something he couldn't remember but he knew that it was important, something related to this. For the time being he brushed it off with the thought that it will come to him later. "That could be useful in the future. I'm not yet sure how I can work my way around this technique. I'll admit it's useful but I don't want to get used to biting people, I almost hurled when I had to bite an animal." He said. _"You've been through worse, you'll get over it."_ Yunika said assuredly.

"Anyway the reason why I bring this up is because it relates to the powers of the Onmyoji. The Onmyoji, or the more easily understood term 'demon sages,' were powerful practitioners of Onmyodo, the way of universal balance. They don't exist anymore but back in the day the Onmyoji were powerful influences in the world, from wielding the elements and commanding magic to predicting the future and summoning any number of spirits to use their strengths. Take me for example: you summoned me here, you have it in you to use my powers anyway you see fit, as long as it's within my power." Enra said.

Naruto waved his hands in front of his face. "Hold on, back up for a minute. If these Onmewhatevers were so strong how come there aren't any more around?" He questioned with a confused look on his face.

Enra shook his head in disappointment. "They don't exist anymore because of the people's fear of them, the fear of where their powers came from. _Demons_, boy, their powers came from demons, sometimes by ways of summoning like you did with me and others that were more like you're situation. Like you they used their gifts for the better of man, dark powers against dark powers for the good hearts of the world. However some people didn't see it that way. All they saw was how powerful they could become.

"All kinds of ideas came to minds of the fearful, of how one demon sage with mastery of their skills could take on entire battalions and best them all. And think about it, the techniques used back in the day weren't as strong as today's. So the people decided to put them all down as quickly as possible. Some of them may have gotten away and lived the rest of their lives in hiding but even then it wouldn't have mattered. The damage had already been done."

"What damage?" "The demons that would help the Onmyoji stopped trusting them that day and without that trust they couldn't use their powers anymore. For those who summoned the demons to their side they simply went away, never to be seen again by their old masters. The ones who had the demons sealed away inside them would have to wait until their hosts' bodies died to be released. It's one of the many reasons why demons hate humans of their own accord."

Naruto imagined a warrior standing on a hill with a number of spirits at his back and many powers at his disposal. In front of the warrior was an army marching towards him. The warrior put his hand out and in a flash of light destroyed the army leaving nothing left. "I can understand why they would be afraid. Were you apart of what happened back then and do you hate humans too?" Naruto asked with a level of concern that surprised both Yunika and Enra.

Enra clasped Naruto's shoulder and shook him gently. "I appreciate your thoughtfulness. It's very rare to see that in humans, it shows you have a kind heart. Like I said before Naruto, I've accepted with what has occurred. Demons can change too you know." He told him. _"Maybe you could learn something from Enra, eh?"_ Naruto thought to Yunika. _"Hah, you'll learn more than I did. Enra is crafty, shrewd and always three steps ahead. Sometimes I hate him for that reason, but here it will be useful to you." _She replied.

"Hey yea, I remember you saying something about the demon sages' powers. Everything you said about what they can do, do you think I could do it too? Not to mention what you can bring to the table, like what the language you were writing in when you were talking to Yunika and the travel by fire trick." Naruto said.

Enra moved his shoulders up and down. "The knowledge that the Onmyoji of old knew took months for them to obtain and then years to master. Their art forms of techniques and combat are similar in the sense of when you and Yunika merge but more complete and the transformation varies depending on the demon. Maybe a few justu, the 'fire trick' as you put it is more of an advanced skill. For now we'll keep it simple until you get that seal fixed. The demon language is a different story altogether. If you want I can teach it to you but maybe when the times are more agreeable. The conversation I had with her was about the fishing and something interesting she mentioned."

"Like what? Does it have anything to do with the demon sages or the weird justu Itachi put on me?" Naruto asked. He eyes shifted to Enra's line and saw it twitching as the lure moved with the tide.

"I'm not sure to be honest. She told me about the time when you first tried using the Vampire Judgment technique. After you passed out she discovered a mark on your forehead resembling from her description the third eye. Now, I've never heard of that happening before with the Onmyoji so maybe it's got something to do with this justu you spoke of." Enra said.

Naruto was about to ask what he meant by the mark when the fishing line started jerking about, nearly wrenching the rod out of Enra's hand. "Ah finally, it's about time." Enra said. He had a wolfish grin on his face and handed the fishing rod to Naruto. "Hold this for me won't you? Hold it tightly." Once again confused, Naruto grabbed the rod and just as he did a strong tug on the opposite end of the line yanked him from where he was standing and dragged him over the sand, pulling him into the tides.

"Enra what the hell is go-" Was all he got out until he hit water. The feeling of surprise was the only reason he still gripped the fishing rod with all his might and as a result he went farther out and deeper down until he stopped. He slowly opened his eyes and screamed as he saw an extremely long and large thing rush at him.

As soon as Naruto disappeared into the waves Enra calmly walked over and picked up the bag. He searched the bag and pulled out something, his grin growing in delight. _Ah Kyuubi, you knew all along I was going to do this. You're learning old friend._ He thought. An explosion of water made him turn around to see Naruto _still_ holding on to the rod…and his catch.

Its body was like that of a giant eel, impossibly long as it rose out of the water with alarming speed, fifty feet, seventy feet, ninety and still rising. It was deep cobalt with sleek scales the size of dinner plates with a row of small spines running down the length of its back. The creature's head was very small in comparison to its body, no bigger than Naruto. It had big pale yellow eyes with no pupils on the far sides of its head and the row of spines cresting just above them. Behind the jaws there two large fins fanning out and behind them were three sets of gills. The creature's mouth was closed and the fishing line was in its jaws.

Naruto was coughing up water as he dangled from the fishing rod. He looked up to see the creature taking the bait so to speak. "Enra what the hell is this thing?!" He yelled at the top of his lungs. The creature looked down at him as though it had never seen a human before. Its jaws opened dropping both the fishing line and Naruto back into the water.

Naruto sluggishly walked onto shore ringing out his jacket, tossing Enra's fishing rod to the side. "Are you okay now or do you want to give me a hand?" Naruto looked at Enra handling something. "In answer to your question, that thing is an ayakashi. They're a type of sea serpent that has lived for a long time. They spend their lives mostly sleeping underwater and rarely do they ever come to the surface except for their favorite food, eel head." Enra said pulling out a jar filled with eel heads. Naruto stared unbelievably at Enra who set the jar down and tossed the object he pulled out of Naruto's bag to him.

"Okay one, I don't even want to know why you keep a jar of eel heads with you. Two, what are we going to do with an ayakashi?" Naruto said infuriated with him. Enra cocked his head to one side with a brow raised. "Is it obvious? Look at the contraption you're holding and you tell me." He replied and picked up the jar.

Naruto watched Enra walk past him to the ayakashi and opened the jar. It had an immediate effect on the sea serpent for its head bobbed up and down and in a flash dived straight for Enra, stopping just inches away. Naruto could see the beast's nostrils flare open as it took in the eel's stench. Enra grabbed one and held it out. The ayakashi sniffed it and slowly opened its mouth showing many small but notably sharp teeth. Enra tossed the head in and laughed as it swallowed it and nudged him gently for more.

Enra tossed in another one. "Ayakashis are gentle giants from the deep, despite their fearsome appearance. They live at the very bottom of the ocean and their scales are incredibly strong, virtually indestructible. On occasion some scales will fall off due to age and new ones will replace them, not to different from a shark's tooth when it falls out. In addition to the density the scales it also secretes oil that not only helps keep the shine, it's also highly flammable until it touches water, then it becomes useless."

Naruto looked at the contraption in his hands and his eyes widened in incredulity when he realized what it was. His gaze went from Enra to the ayakashi then back to Enra. "Are we gonna do what I think we're gonna do?" Enra's only response was a smile and said, "Oh, and make sure you don't forget the bag and my fishing rod. Few other important things we still need to do yet until we reach the sword." _"Like I said, crafty, shrewd and I hate him for that reason."_ Yunika said.

**A/N:** Yet another chapter under my belt. Sorry for the wait, been reading this great book by a guy named Brent Weeks, awesome story. Anyway, I'm pretty sure I don't need to say anything about the 'contraption' Enra grabbed as it kind of speaks for itself and yea, no real fight scene here and but hey in my defense if I saw something like the monster eel I wouldn't want to fight it either (the people really love their violence don't they?) And no, Naruto doesn't know about Goturo being an evil corrupt bastard, who plays a couple of big parts in the story. I put in some more info on the demon sage development, still thinking some things through on it and threw in the demon language thing of my own accord. Again, I apologize ahead of time for anything I may get wrong about the translations, still a bit rusty.

What will become of the mark on Naruto's forehead? What new and unbelievable justu will he learn on his journey?

When are Kakashi and Shikamaru's group going to catch up? And where the hell is Sasuke in all this?!

But the most important question that I predict will be on your minds is…how does Enra get this stuff to fit in his robe? All important questions, soon to be answered. Check in next chapter when we see a witch's methods of haggling her way onto a boat, I unveil another spook some can relate to and we get to see a special appearance. Read & Review, seriously folks it helps the story if the writer gets different opinions. I can't tell if it's good or not if no one's saying anything.


	13. A Sea Voyage with Rouges

A Sea Voyage with Rogues

(With Kakashi and Shikamaru's group)

Once Baba finally stopped her frenzied rush Mata told her he saw Naruto and his companion go a different way, away from the portside villages. Baba cursed herself for her rashness, how rare it was to be seen in an old woman she said, so they chose to continue on to the village in hopes of obtaining a boat and finding Naruto on the tides.

It was in the afternoon when they arrived at the seaside village Baba spoke of. The village was run down and looked as though it was struck by a hurricane; people were in the middle of repairing shops and those whose businesses weren't destroyed were having poor attempts to recover lost profits. Obvious-looking ruffians prowled the streets in hopes of mugging some unsuspecting innocent. Off in the far end of the village where the land met the sea, smithies could be seen stoking the blazes of their forges while harbormasters shouted out order after order to sailors.

"What do you think is going on?" Lee asked his eyes passing over the wreckage of a bakery. Kakashi eyed a man with a hand behind his back and a clear air of menace, probably debating whether or not to mug them. "It looks like it was under attack recently, but judging from what I've seen so far, I can't tell if was from outside the village or the villagers themselves." He said as the man walked passed, his eyes always on Kakashi.

Baba stood beside Kakashi, her pipe in her hand and Mata back in his small cat form with his body draped over her shoulders. "We're not here to see the sights, as fantastic as they may be." She said sarcastically. Shikamaru coughed to get everyone's attention. "This large of a group is going to draw unwanted attention. It's best to split up in pairs to avoid suspicion. Baba and Mata should be fine on their own. Itachi will go with Kisame like always, Sakura with Hinata, Kakashi with Lee, and Ino will be with me. When Baba finds the one she's looking for, she'll send out Mata to find anyone of us. Wander around like a tourist and keep your eyes peeled at all times until then." He told everyone.

They did as ordered and kept together, acting like nothing was amiss. Baba aimed straight for the harbor while everyone else inspected the available shops to see what was left: Itachi and Kisame checked out the blacksmiths for their weaponry, Hinata and Sakura passed through the food market and everyone else simply kept to themselves.

Shikamaru had one eye on the many destroyed stores and watched Baba with the other. Baba walked to a group of men shouting out orders and tried to get one's attention. Two of them saw her and with eyes wide backed away slowly. The third man looked at the two and turned around to see who it was pestering him. Shikamaru saw him look down at Baba with a face of aggravation one instant, then a kind smile the next and had, what Shikamaru thought he saw, fear in his eyes.

Baba said something to the harbormaster that made him throw his arms up and look around in a panic. It almost had have been comical if the two weren't surrounded by the wake of ruin. Moments passed and the harbormaster bowed his head in defeat. He pointed off in some direction and Baba nodded in thanks. She walked off and the harbormaster exhaled.

_Sheesh, even though we went through something worse I _still_ can't believe she's a demon witch. Oh well._ Shikamaru thought and sighed. Ino gave a sideways glance at Baba as she witnessed the event. "What do you think she did the last time she was here?" She asked. Shikamaru shuddered, "I don't even want to think about it."

Kakashi had his right arm across Lee's shoulders and Lee took in the sights from the village entrance. While Kakashi did lookout Lee asked, "Kakashi-sensei, if I may? I do not think it is a good idea to leave Baba to herself."

"What is it? You're not afraid for her safety are you?" Kakashi said. Lee looked out the village with worry. "It is not that. I do not fully trust her so it is not my place to say, but it seems to be a bad idea to let someone of her caliber walk in a town where she has history. Who knows what hidden past she has here? Not just her either; there is also Itachi and Kisame, who you have joined forces with all because of their knowledge on Naruto's whereabouts. Why is it that we are helping our enemies?" Lee replied.

"It's also something that's crossed my mind. We've acquired new allies with the same path laid out but that path has different endings. Sometimes on missions it's necessary to fight alongside our foes for something bigger than us. In this case that would be Naruto. I've been doing some thinking on that matter so don't worry about it too much." Kakashi said and smiled with his eye.

Meanwhile Baba walked past many men and women rushing to get their orders done along the docks. The triple tapping sounds of her feet and cane could hardly be heard over the crowd. Besides some normal civilians going about their day, she was the only other person not running around like chickens without heads, like nobody special.

Amongst the crowd there was a young man with dark hair, chest showing under a torn white vest, white pants tied to the waist with rope and sandals carefully shadowing her. Baba walked around the docks for some time, petted Mata on the head who jumped off and strutted away, tail whipping the air. Baba stared down into the blue waters and stood there. The man smiled cruelly and after looking around he brought out a small dagger from behind his back.

He moved without a sound, dagger raised in the air. As he was about to proceed with the mugging cliché he found he couldn't move his right foot. Confused, he looked down and saw the ground had grown over his foot. "I had a feeling someone would try robbing me. I'm just disappointed in your skills. I knew you had been following me the entire time." Baba said, right in his face out of nowhere.

In a panic he made a wild swing with the knife and was stopped by a sprout of rock shooting up and wrapping around his hand. Baba tapped the head of her cane against the man's chest twice and on the third time she pushed him with it. Tendrils crept out of the wooden bumps and started working their way up to his face.

"You have a decision to make young man. I'm going to give you the choice of how you die: you can be incased in stone that will slowly grow over your body and turn you into a living statue or you can have these," She waved her hand over the spidery coils hovering over one of his eyes. "Work their way into your body and do all sorts of nasty things to your insides…unless, of course, you have something to tell me that will give you time to think?"

The assailant was terrified of this ungodly creature and her ease at the words and actions of murder. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I was only paid to do this." He screamed. The tendrils eased back giving him some breathing room. "Oh? Is that so? Who paid you, and do try to remember quickly." She said and the tendrils started in on him again as to show her intent if he didn't.

"A woman, a woman came to me with money and told me to mug you. She said she was given the money from someone else, someone who said they knew what you are and they wanted to give you a message. The message was if you want them to know about what happened, keep up with what you're doing. If you need to find a way to read the scroll, talk to your friend. That's all." He said.

Baba's face turned to stone as she thought about his words. _Hmm, must be their raven-haired friend. Let's see what else I can squeeze out of this one._ "I'll ask you one more question, answer it truthfully and I will let you live. I'm looking for a certain person who lives around here, a man built like a gorilla with fiery red hair, possibly a beard and loves to drink. Where can I find such a man?" She asked in a sweet and mocking tone.

"C-Captain Shobo, Captain Shobo is the one you want. After a hard day's work he can found at the harbor's tavern. He should be there now." He squirmed. Baba smiled and pulled her cane away. "That's a good child. You may go." The rock surrounding his foot and hand crumbled away and he ran for his life. Baba started her search looking down the line of buildings for any sign of the tavern and begun scouring for it, oblivious to a figure hiding in the shadows, watching her from a distance.

Baba found the tavern her assailant talked about. She could hear booming laughter coming from inside and entered to see a man fitting the description she got sitting at a table in the far back. The laughter came from an ape of a man made from marble with short spiky red hair and beard to match. His clothing style was much like the man who attacked her: his upper body sported nothing but a pair of thick wristbands and a blue vest showing many scars running up and down his arms and chest. He had on large black pants and odd looking boots. Sprawled all over the table were empty sake bottles.

He spoke with a heavy tongue and his words slurred some. "Ah, noshing like a few drinshs to eash*hic* the pain of hard labor." He looked at the waiter and shook the near empty bottle he had. "Bring me anosher *hic* round, someshing wish a little strengsh sis time!" He yelled with gusto and took a drink. Baba approached the man and knocked on his table with her fist.

"Captain Shobo, I presume?" She asked gaining a drunken stare from him. He squinted at her with a bare glimpse of recognition. "I know you from somewhere, don't I? 'M shorry if I don't; 'm a bit off the seat if you know what I mean." He said. Baba heaved an apathetic sigh. "Come now Shobo, you hurt me. You don't have to play around with me. If anything you should be able to drink this place dry and two others like it and still be sober, or have you lost that knack since the last time we met?"

Shobo put down the bottle and laughed wearily. All of a sudden his intoxicated stupor vanished and any sense of him having alcohol disappeared along with it. When he talked his speech was steady. "I never could fool you, Mistress Baba. How have you been? Life treating you well I hope." He asked.

"I've been better. We always have interesting chats each time I visit and I never bothered but I must ask this time, why _do_ you fake your drinking habits?" Baba sat down with him placing her cane on her lap. Shobo moved the empty bottles aside and laid his arms on the table. "The answer is quite obvious. If I drank too much my favorite tavern would be forced to close down. This place has by far the best sake I've had in years and I'm not too keen on having that happen." He replied.

Shobo looked past Baba and leaned in close. "Since you've come without your pet, I already know why you're here. Ask of me whatever you will." He said in a hushed tone. "Before I do, what happened to this town?" She asked.

Shobo put his hand to his face and groaned, "My brothers had another fight over a stupid bet, again. They seem to fight more regularly these days, every time they make port with their latest haul. If you came here a day earlier you would have seen it yourself, but you know just as well as I how they can be."

Baba cackled loudly, "Indeed I do. Boys will be boys after all. I can only imagine your wife has some words about the matter." "Oh she does and nowadays I'm starting to wonder whose worse, my brother's fights or her temper." He said and chuckled at his joke.

A serious look passed over Baba's face. "What's say we get down to business? I have need of your aid to get to a certain island. I have passengers and they're coming with me. We'll need special guides of course; you know the kinds I need. Our destination is the Light Country." She said.

Shobo leaned back and smiled. "It's like that is it? And the other things you always ask me about?" Baba nodded in silence. Shobo reached into his pants pocket and pulled out an envelope. "I managed to find one of the items you previously requested. It was 'acquisitioned' by a couple of officials and hidden away. I'm sad to say that's all I know for now." He said and handed it to her.

Baba took the package and bowed her head in thanks. Movement at the entrance caught Shobo's eyes. Itachi and Kakashi had entered with Mata out in front. "These must be the companions you spoke of." Shobo assumed. Baba turned her head to see them approaching. "That's them." He stood up and extended his hand in greeting.

Kakashi shook it. "This is the person you needed to find Baba?" Kakashi asked. "Yup, this is Captain Shobo, well-known mariner and sea merchant of strange objects. He's one of the harbormasters who runs the docks and will be the man to help us get to the Light Country. On a side note," Baba looked to Itachi. "Itachi me dear, could you pass me the scroll?" Itachi gave her the scroll and she handed it to Shobo. "I was also hoping you might know something about this. I can't open it nor do I know a thing about it." She said.

Shobo studied the iron band binding the scroll. He turned it over and over again, eyes always moving 'til they stopped on the seal. "Can I borrow a kunai from one of you?" He asked. Kakashi took one out and Shobo grabbed it his gaze not moving from the scroll. With swiftness he hit the metal band with the kunai producing a single ringing note that resonated throughout the tavern.

The sound still hung in the air when Shobo tossed the kunai back to Kakashi and said, "It's an old metalworker's trick I picked up. When you strike metal against metal at the right angle and level of power, you can tell how pure it is by the sound it makes. The clearer the sound is, the purer the metal. I can't tell you anything about the seal, it's not my forte. But I can tell you whoever forged the iron is highly skilled, not many blacksmiths can forge iron this pure. Every man who knows the bellows can recognize their work, show it around and you might get somewhere."

He gave it back to Baba and picked up the sake bottle, finishing it in one gulp. "My two cents, if you want to get anywhere with that scroll, you should focus less on the scroll for the time being and more on whoever made that band. We seadogs have a saying: it's easier to find a fish in a pond than water in the desert."

Shobo stood and walked up to Kakashi. He clasped his shoulder and shook it with a heartfelt grin on his face. "Well, let's get the rest of your group and find my crew. We're heading out as soon as you're ready!" He bellowed and ran out. Kakashi had a nervous look and asked, "His he, you know, okay?" Baba smiled her wide smile and walked out with Mata closely behind. _I hope that means yes. _He thought with uneasiness.

Once everyone was rounded up, Shikamaru swept through their inventory again. Sakura and Hinata bought more food to help make their supply last longer and Kisame had done some of his own shopping, finding some odd weapons and devices he thought might be of use later on. Itachi showed the scroll to every metalworker and got no results. Seeing they could do no more the ninja found Shobo and followed him to one of village shipyards. They passed a number of ships of different shapes and sizes. Shobo was standing in front of a majestic-looking xebec ship. Shobo spread his arms with a flourish, showing off the grandeur of his vessel.

"As harbormaster I have partial power over these docks so when I see a ship I like, I work on obtaining it and some ships I get by 'unspoken' methods. Although I have many in my collection this one is my favorite, the Blue Drunkard." His chest swelled with pride. Ino noticed the row of guns mounted on the port and starboard sides. "Are those really necessary? I thought you were a fisherman." She mentioned.

"What gave you the impression that I was a fisherman?" Shobo teased. "My siblings are fishermen who get carried away from time to time. I, on the other hand, am a connoisseur of finding and procuring strange and rare objects, call it high-risk trading." Ino gave him a dirty look. "So, you're a pirate." She said it as a statement more than a question.

Shobo grinned and shrugged, "It's a dirty term, but yes. Piracy is one of the things I do for a living. That and secretly ship people from point A to point B. My compensation changes depending on the situation and Baba has told me you're all going to the Light Country. I'm not on very good terms with that land so any payback I get, or goods I find from that place, I take. I have only one rule about my work and that's never to take an innocent life. I'm pretty adamant about that and no one knows that better than my crew."

Shikamaru looked around the shipyard. "Speaking of which, where are they? I haven't seen another person in this place since we walked in here. I mean, a ship like this needs quite a few people doesn't it?" He asked. Shobo was dazed for a moment at the question and then he knocked a fist against his temple.

"Oh I almost forgot, thank you for reminding me lad. Before we make port I order everyone to scatter using the life rafts save for two, for security and all that. They're onboard." He told him and walked up the plank. The deck was barren. The doors to the cargo hold were wide open and so were the doors to the lower levels beneath the bridge. "Mizu, Yuki! Your captain has returned! Front and center now!" He barked.

Two figures jumped out from the cargo hold and stood before the shinobi, both male. Both of them were tall and well built, one slightly shorter than the other. The taller one had a dull complexion and looked to be in his late twenties. He had shoulder length black hair and bandages covering most of his face leaving his eyes and mouth exposed. He had on a sleeveless black shirt with a high collar, metal rings fastened inside the collar and a pack attached to his left bicep. He had white pants with a wave design on his right leg and boots similar to Shobo's.

The other one had pale skin, looked to be eighteen to twenty and also had black hair though his was cut short. His outfit was the same, a few differences being he had a range finder equipped, instead of the arm pack he had gloves with thin metal bands that held several small diamonds, and a snowflake design on his right leg. "Tell me she's ready to go Mizu." Shobo addressed the one with the mummified face. He had a gruff voice like gravel being ground together. "Yup, we've just been waiting on you." Mizu replied.

"That's good. We have a new request from Baba. We'll be taking this group to the Light Country. In my ship the trip will take a day-and-a-half to get there so prepare to move out. We leave in thirty!" Shobo said. He tapped on Yuki's shoulder and Yuki followed him below deck and Mizu stayed behind. His eyes passed over everyone, stopping at Kakashi for the briefest of moments, which Kakashi caught and then Mizu followed the two.

Sakura motioned for Kakashi. "Kakashi-sensei, do you know that man? He looked at you like he knew you." She whispered. "I don't know but you may have something there." He said. He rushed up to Mizu and grabbed his arm. Mizu turned and scowled, "What is it?" He asked, irritated. "I'm sorry but have we met? You look familiar." Kakashi stared at Mizu intently.

Mizu pulled his arm away. "It possible, Shobo helps people travel everywhere. You may have been one of his previous passengers and just happened to see me then." He told him. Kakashi leaned in closer not blinking, not wavering. "No it isn't that. I've seen you before somewhere else, like a poster or a book…" Mizu rolled his eyes and walked off. "Tell me if you remember, maybe we can drink to old times we had." He said and waved them off as he made for the stairs.

Kakashi's thoughts drifted off to another time when he saw this man. It was on a mission, of that he was sure, but which one and where? He pictured this man in different forms and different scenarios hoping to bring something up, something that would strike a chord in his memory. Gruff demeanor, off-colored skin tone, and something was still missing. Then in a flash, something clicked. Kakashi was stunned by the revelation, knowing that it had been years since the last encounter with _him_. Kakashi knew that last time he saw _him _it was when _he_ was on the verge of death with no hope of surviving.

But he had to be sure. He had to be absolutely sure because an important piece of the puzzle was missing. So he ran to Mizu again and stopped him. In a rage Mizu spun around, "What is it now? If you don't stop pestering me I'll throw you off this ship I don't care what Shobo says." Kakashi ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry again. One last question and I won't bother you anymore. Please indulge me." Kakashi beckoned for Mizu to lean in so as to not let the others overhear.

"From what I can tell you seem like the expert fighter, handy with a multitude of skills and weapons. If you weren't you probably wouldn't be alive in this line of work. So I have to ask, how is your swordsmanship?" Mizu's expressionless face told Kakashi nothing as he replied, "Good enough to keep myself alive. I don't like to use it much because it gets in the way when fighting on the ship but wait a while and you might see my skills soon."

Kakashi groaned and backed off. "Alright, thanks. Sorry to bug you so much." He said apologetically. Mizu walked down the steps and Kakashi went back to Sakura. "So, is he someone you know?" She asked. Kakashi's head was down. "Maybe, maybe not, but I guess we'll find out." He said.

Kakashi, Sakura and everyone went below deck to get ready for the trip ahead…

**A/N:** Now we begin the sea arc of this journey, which will be followed by the prison arc and so on. If you know your Naruto, and everyone who's heard of it should, you should easily guess who Mizu and Yuki really are from how I wrote them. Surprise! Baba's been looking for something for a long time now, makes you wonder what it is. I know that the pirate thing was probably over the top, but hey, I like pirates. And who was it spying on Baba as she interrogated the poor man?

I had a bit of fun writing this one, much so that I'm making a game out of it this time: correctly guess what the spook is that I talked about last chapter and you will have your favorite Naruto character that I haven't added in, put in the story within reason and as a bonus the first person to be right will have one of their ideas written in as well, nothing that kills it though, the show must go on after all. Three hints will be provided and should be easy enough to make a guess at. Those hints are as follows: it is Shobo, it is a sea spirit, and it loves and I mean loves its booze. To the victor, goes the spoils, I will wait to do the next chapter after the game is over.

Next time around we get our first glimpse at the Light Country, we learn more about demon powers and their effects on humans, Enra tells us more on how he and Yunika met, and some other things. Read&Review.


	14. Class is in Session: Part I

**A/N: **Wow, ok I have got to do this. I can understand that this is only a fanfic, so must of it is just your classical thought up BS that you all love. However in my opinion what makes a good story enjoyable is some real world lore and facts written in, something that people can wrap their minds around and believe, just like how the original storyline was made. Last chapter I mentioned having a bit of a contest, something not only helpful to the story if someone succeeded, but you get to learn something new on your own.

Yet alas, only one person was victorious in having a bit of fun with myths and monsters, one Wolfish Imp, dear friend of mine, we talk over FB, who not only guessed who Mizu and Yuri were (made it easy), they also guessed what Shobo was (Again, made it EASY. Do your research if you don't believe me)! Turns out, bit of a myth nut, who would of thought? XD For those who DIDN'T get it, Shobo is a Japanese sea spirit called, wait for it, a shojo, remade for more modern times and no one but Baba knows who Shobo really is.

On a side note, at the begging of one reviewer I will not be making a harem for the time being, at least not until the policies change so if there is anyone who was reading this solely for the purpose of seeing the Naruto girls get their freak on, you may as well stop. Got to respect the rules on this one above all else.

Ok, I'm done ranting so let's get to the thick of it. Next chapter or so will be about Naruto working his way onto the island and into the prison, so he won't meet up with the others for some time.

Without further ado, let the next installment of Demon Love commence!

Class is in Session Part I

(On the sea, with Naruto)

The high seas were calm and steady as an ayakashi glided over the surface like a great blue mirror, its massive serpentine body carrying three people and leaving quite a spray in its wake. Just behind its head Naruto sat on a large harness rigged up around the head and part of the neck of the beast holding a strap in one hand and Enra's fishing pole with an eel's head on the hook in the other, while another Naruto was sitting with Enra on a hump raised high above the water.

"I didn't believe it at first when Yunika told me to get that thing-you should have seen the guy's face when I told him what I needed. Looked at me like I was asking him where the edge of the world was," Naruto blatantly said. "I never would have guessed I'd be getting to this prison place like this. It almost feels like she knew this was going to happen."

Enra was writing something on a scroll with a diligent hand. "I wouldn't put it past her. You'd never know it, but there was a time when Kyuubi was a mischievous little vixen of a youngling. But that was a long time ago and she has changed quite a bit since then." Naruto opened his mouth to say something and stopped himself. He sensed for the she-demon and felt her sleeping, as far as he could tell.

_Seems like a good time to ask._ He thought. "Hey Enra, since we probably have a lot of time to kill before we hit land I've been wanting to ask, what _was_ she like back then," Naruto asked. Enra stopped what he was doing and looked at him with a passive face. Naruto suddenly felt embarrassed asking and starting looking everywhere but at Enra. "Well, I'm asking because she asked me if I wondered about what demons really are and where they came from, and since you know her…" His voice trailed off.

"She's sleeping?" Enra guessed and Naruto silence told him he was right. Enra sighed heavily, wrapping up the scroll and putting it in his robe, "It only seems right of your interest in her past, and I should tell you more about our kind anyway. I shall begin with a story that should answer some of your questions, but before I do I have conditions. Beings other than Yunika and I have their fates twisted into this and I will not go about revealing more than I need to for their secrecy. Is that understood?" He said.

Naruto agreed and tried to get as comfortable as possible which was harder than expected when you're trying to sit still on a giant moving serpent. "Where to start…I think it best to begin at the fall of the Onmyoji. As I have told you when the people started to get rid of the Onmyoji, the demons who partnered with them left their side and vanished. The normal people believed that all of them were gone, back to wherever they were summoned from. But what they don't understand is we don't live in this world like your normal summoned creatures do.

"We all have a home of our own; a world mirroring yours, unlike anything you can imagine. Now I know what you are thinking, a demon world? It can't be anything good when you see its inhabitants in our true form, but it really is a magnificent place to see. There are unpleasant sights to be sure, but it has a somewhat eerie beauty to it, like that magic feeling you get when the time of owl-light comes just before night begins in your world."

_An entire world of creatures like Enra and Yunika…I guess it's possible._ He thought. "Do all demons come from there? I mean what are they exactly?" Naruto asked. Enra rubbed his chin in deep thought. "How to put it in a way you'll understand," And he snapped his fingers and searched his robe. He pulled out a small kameosa bottle with a red wax stopper. He asked for a kunai and pried off the stopper with it, letting it fall in the water. "Imagine this bottle represents you as you are, a living, breathing human and the liquid inside is your soul." Enra said handing the knife back.

"Now imagine that you've died, it doesn't matter how or when. When you die your body becomes a corporeal vessel for your mind and soul." He held the bottle over his other hand and tipped it over, pouring out a sparkling ochroid substance. The thick liquid stopped inches above Enra's hand and began to fill an invisible globe. When he stopped pouring he held out a buoyant golden sphere. "This is your soul when it has left the body. The soul is the most powerful thing in humans; it's what makes up our very being. You are who you are because of it."

Naruto poked the floating bubble, producing ripples and retaining its shape. "What does the soul have to do with demons?" He asked in awe the bubble. "It's understandable that you wouldn't get it at first. Do you know about the prospects of Heaven and Hell?" Naruto closed his eyes scratched his head in thought. "A little bit. People who do good things for the right reasons go to Heaven and those who are corrupt and use others for their selfish reasons go to Hell." He replied.

Enra bobbed his head. "At least you know the basics. When you understand, it becomes simple. When you die your soul goes to either Heaven or Hell. Upon definition, where do you think the demon world is?"

Naruto kept on scratching and scratching and then eyes flying open, he said, "Hell is the demon world?" Enra smiled. "In more than one way, yes, Hell is our home. When humans die, sometimes they go to Hell. When they do, there are rare occasions when they're souls are filled with such hateful emotions they change, and they become demons. Do you remember when I told you demons are spirits of dark emotions manifested in physical form? When a human with so much evil in their heart arrives in Hell they transform into something that matches their personality and everything about their previous lives, what they did, how they lived, all of their memories wiped clean. It is your kind that fills the demon world with its residents."

"You used to be a human? Do you remember anything about your past life?" Naruto questioned. Enra raised the bubble over the bottle and the liquid was poured back in it. "None of us remember our past lives, but there are certain…" He looked at Naruto with a thousand-yard stare, like he was seeing something else. "There are certain memories that aren't washed away completely. There are times where some things can't be forgotten."

Enra stared on into an abyss unseen to Naruto who wondered what he was thinking. It wasn't until Naruto snapped his fingers in his face that Enra came back. "Oh I'm sorry, where was I? Ah yes, memory. When some humans become demons they have what are called Hearts, items sacred to them. From what I've heard, Hearts hold the soul of a demon as they were before they died, and not just their souls but also their memories too."

"I don't get it, what would a demon need something like that for in the afterlife?" Naruto asked. "Even in death, souls and memories still hold power. I'm not quite sure how to explain it, but if you can get your hands on one, you can use it to make yourself stronger." Enra told him putting the bottle away.

"Do you have one? Does Yunika?" Water splashed up against the ayakashi's scales. Enra took his time answering the question. He cocked his head from one side to the other in thought and looked up at the sky and down to the water. "I don't have such an item in my possession, but Kyuubi does," He said with a sideways glance. "Or rather, she did. Unfortunately, she lost it many years ago, helping me."

Naruto looked at him detecting some sadness in Enra's words with a trace of regret. "If it isn't wrong to ask, can you tell me what happened?" Naruto said. Enra stared at Naruto with his thousand-yard stare again. When he spoke he had a change in his voice, as though he was about to relief himself of a great burden. "I can't put my finger on it but there is something about you that I like youngling. Since you have asked I will tell you what I can.

"I had gotten myself into an incident that involved powers higher than my own. I was punished for years and when my sentence was soon over, so too was my life soon to end. Before the final note was to be sung, there she was out of nowhere to save my life. She used up all her power to bring us both into your world, but in doing so she left her Heart behind and with it, all of her powers."

Naruto raised his hand in silence and Enra nodded giving him the go-ahead to speak. "You mean to say she was more powerful back then then she is now?" He said skeptic of this claim. "Demons without Hearts are nothing more than a raw power source. While demons are powerful, those with Hearts have true power, abilities that would put the strongest shinobi to shame. Although Kyuubi is young, her powers were feared even then. Yet sadly, not only can she not use her full power, she doesn't remember she ever had a Heart to begin with.

"I cannot say any more than that because it is not my place to unveil other's secrets without their knowledge. I have told you all that is mine to tell and nothing more." Naruto took what Enra said to heart and pondered on it. _Could it be possible that she's _that_ powerful? Even I can't believe that._

Enra yawned and stood up. "This story seems to have put a touch of misery in the air. Maybe it's best to change the subject to something more beneficial." His body changed to smoke and rushed at Naruto catching him off guard. The smoke cloud hit Naruto just above the chest and threw Naruto on his back from the force of the impact. Naruto shook his head of the surprise and jumped to his feet. "Enra what the hell was that about?" He shouted and looked around and in his rage he couldn't see him.

"_Relax boy, I know it was a bit much but I needed to surprise you."_ Enra's voice whispered in his thoughts. "Enra? Where are you?" Naruto asked looking around again not getting the hint. _"It's it obvious? I'm in your head. Well, actually I think possessing you is more accurate."_

"Possessing me?" Naruto's body started to move of its own accord. It stood up and walked over to the clone near the ayakashi's head. _"That's right. The moderate way of teaching may not give us enough time to train you properly. I'm going to teach you how demon sages wield their powers, but in a way that's different to what you may be used to. For starters, I'll teach you how the sages obtained their powers from demons and how they used it properly._

"_There are three types of demonic beings that exist which can give power to humans: physical, spiritual, and archaic. Physical demons are the weakest of the three and only rely on brute strength to win their battles. Spiritual ones, like me, can possess humans and control them to an extent and are more common than most. Archaic demons are the most powerful of us all and are the rarest to find. We on the other hand are lucky enough to have found one."_

"Found one? You mean the ayakashi?" Naruto asked looking down at the serpent. _"That right. Ayakashi are classified as archaic for their strength and their scales. Back in the day, if a demon sage was to happen across one, their power would be a great advantage in battle. While acquiring it is one thing, mastering it is another thing entirely."_ Enra had Naruto's body near the ayakashi's mouth, where he proceeded to take out a kunai and, after a bit of waiting, the ayakashi opened up and the arm in which said kunai was held, was jammed between two teeth.

After some thrashing, and some screaming, Enra had Naruto back on top of its head freaked out. "Was there a point to any of what you just did?" He groaned. _"I'm starting to find it difficult to see why she hasn't torn you a new one yet. Look at the kunai." _Naruto watched as Enra used his arm to raise the weapon and saw a blue liquid dropping off the blade. "What is this stuff, blood? What do I do with this?" Before he knew what happened, Naruto's mouth opened and wiped the kunai on his tongue, allowing the blood to slide off and swallowed, all Enra's doing.

Naruto began to cough and gag on the blood as it went down his throat. "What the hell! It burns like I swallowed magma." He shouted grabbing his throat. _"It is how they gain their powers, by taking in some of the demon's essence and ingesting it into the body. Your body will need time to adapt to it but once it does it will be worth the trouble,"_ Enra explained.

"_For the time being I'll explain the next part on their art forms and battling styles. For the most part a demon sage's real power doesn't come from the demons, but from using their strengths to the best potential in any given combat situation. The justu performed by the sages of old were managed by using demonic chakra and their art forms were done by using the demon's powers in tandem with the sage's own body. It's similar to when you used Kyuubi's chakra, but with more technique. By comparing the two chakras in your body we can find training that best suits you." _Naruto stopped coughing and rubbed his throat.

"_Try seeing it this way: as you already know, Kyuubi's chakra is much more powerful than your own but when you tap into any large amount of it you lose all sense of control. We will call this the force chakra. Then you have your normal chakra, you have great control over it but it doesn't rival Kyuubi's power, though your chakra reserves rival Kyuubi's in quantity. This will be the control chakra. What is your most powerful justu you can use multiple times in your natural state?"_

"That one's easy, it's my Rasengan." Naruto exclaimed with pride. _"Good, we have a starting point. Now tell me how this justu works, everything you can."_ Naruto told Enra about it in detail from form to function, how long it took him to master it and the effects it had when used. _"Interesting…can you perform it, right now?" _Enra said.

Naruto put a hand on the seal on his stomach. "Yunika told me it was best not to take that chance because of the cracking seal inside her cage. She said something like the Rasengan is a last resort move for now. I might be able to use Vampire Judgment first to get the chakra I need, but for that justu I'll need a different source of chakra and I won't bite the ayakashi." He said and shuddered at the memory.

Enra's voice changed from curiosity to disappointment. _"Oh, I see. Well, at least I can give you some insight on the control and force chakras. When you use your Rasengan with your normal chakra, you take it and condense it which takes up all of your focus and control over that vast power, similar to when you turn on a hose and stick your thumb over the end you increase the pressure and in turn you increase the power._

"_Using Kyuubi's chakra is different in that regard. If your chakra is like water coming out of a hose, then her chakra is like a grand waterfall. It has much more power and is nearly impossible for someone of your skill level to control it. Every time you try, you get the raw power it holds but without proper focus you can't take it to the next level. After all, you can't put an entire waterfall into a hose."_

"No offense but what does this have to do with training?" Naruto asked impatiently. _"You will understand soon enough. For now while we have the time given to us, I'm going to teach you how to use demonic art forms using my power. Enter your mindscape and have your clone notify us of anything going on in the real world." _He told Naruto and went quiet. Naruto groaned again and did as he was told. Naruto found Enra standing in front of the cage doors, looking in on his old friend. Yunika had reverted back to her bestial form and was sleeping peacefully.

Enra placed a hand on the cell in a sympathetic manner, "Ah my dear friend, how the years have passed and here you are. Time has not been kind to you, not since you saved me…" He whispered. Her giant vulpine form stirred a little but continued to slumber. He removed his hand and turned to Naruto with a look of grievance. "Are you going to be okay?" Naruto asked concerned with Enra seeing his savoir behind bars.

Yunika slowly opened one vermillion eye to see what they were talking about already knowing who it was that woke her from her sleep. "Yes, I'll be fine. It's just seeing her like this…I wish I could free her from this imprisonment. I know what she did to your home but even she doesn't deserve this." He replied quietly. Yunika's eye moved from Enra to Naruto and saw him stretch and rub the back of his head again.

"Look, I know it isn't my place to say but the past is the past. We can't change it no matter how hard we try. I can't vouch for her kindness in the time I've known her or her "trusting" nature, the way she beats around the whole damn forest to get anything done, and on top of that a good amount of my memories are locked away behind that seal she made. So far all I can say about her is she's manipulative, has a dark sense of humor, cares only about herself, AND hates every human in the world. Add that to everything I've learned about her, it seems that she was meant to stay locked up." He said blatantly.

Yunika lowered her gaze with a feeling of loathing and she took a breath to speak her thoughts. "But,"

She stopped and her eye looked back up in surprise at Naruto who spoke. He was looking over at the seal on the cage, not seeing she was awake. "There were moments where she showed a more human side. Each time she did she surprised me with something new. What amazed me most was when she transformed into her human form." Enra gave him his head-cocked-to-the-side look. "Oh? And how did she look?" He asked.

Naruto walked slowly towards the doors, his eyes fixed on her, unaware that she was awake. "There's no other way to say it, she was beautiful. When she was harassing me, she had a certain style that made it work. I can't put it into words really but, it feels like we work well with each other." He said softly. Yunika didn't move a muscle, not to continue the ruse but out of shock. She never heard someone speak of her in such kind regard.

Enra laughed, "That's the Kyuubi I remember. Even if she wears a mask she hasn't changed. But enough of nostalgia," He walked up to Naruto and put a hand on his shoulder. "Before we start there are two cardinal rules the demon sages must always obey: do not fight a demon you cannot conquer and do not use a demon's power if you don't carry a demon's spirit."

He put his other hand up to stop Naruto when he opened his mouth. "If you fight a demon too strong you will lose your life in the attempt. Those who use their power without a demonic host will become a demon themselves. If Yunika somehow ever gets taken away from you, should it come to pass, do not try to use any power Hell-forged in nature."

Enra removed his hand and bowed. "Now that we've gotten that out of the way, shall we get started?" He said with a snarky grin looking up. Naruto grinned in return, "Finally, yes." Enra leaped back and took a stance, placing his left leg forward and both arms out palms facing Naruto like he was pushing a heavy object. "In my experience, I find the best way to learn is in the field and this way we can do it in secret. I'm going to teach you how to learn on the fly, to be aware of everything around you and understand it and react accordingly. This is where we will begin. You will fight me and you will learn." His words had a stern tone that made Naruto excited in the anticipation of battle.

Naruto pulled out a kunai and readied himself, a wild grin spreading over his face. "Alright, you're on. I've done nothing but run around like a dog without its master. It's about damn time I got some real training in!" And with a yell he charged at Enra with all he had as Yunika watched in silence.

**A/N:** So what'd you all think of this one?

I borrowed the mirror world idea from one of my favorite games and I planned on using the memory and souls as tangible objects of power, anyone who knows the classical version of the kitsune might know where I'm going with the sacred Hearts idea. I didn't have much of a theory for how to place demons as a form of rank so I went with a simpler option and decided to go for an umbrella term rather than attempt to specify absolutely everything.

I plan on using some the force and control chakra ideas to get inventive with some old and new justu, so if anyone cares to give their two cents I say get creative. Due credit will be given as always if used in the story.

Next chapter, Naruto works past island security, meets two interesting kids along the way, a 'relative' comes into play, and we'll get to see the first good fight scene of the story. Until then, you know what to do. R&R folks!

P.S. By the time this chapter is up the next one will have been done so I will wait for the reviews to roll in before I upload it.


	15. Class is in Session: Part II

**A/N:** Well, so far I've gotten no complaints about last chapter, so assuming that people are reading the story in the first place I think it was well accepted. No flames about the lack of blood and violence or the overdone aspects of lore and my own little developments, but fear not for your lust for gore and bloodshed will soon be satisfied. In this one we'll get a good look at the island and its security and watch as a man fights through most of it, "as though he's possessed"(Evil laughter, yup I'm going with THAT reference.).

A reminder to everyone reading this: I thank you for your interest in the story but please remember that it is a fanfiction, not every little detail is going to match up with the original nor I'm I going to make it so, obviously seen in the first chapter.

Also I will start explaining some of the justu Naruto learns from this point on in case people don't understand it completely as well as some older ones. So, let's get started shall we?

Class is in Session Part II

(A day and a half later, night, with Naruto)

Naruto had his back up against a building as a group of people ran past his hiding place. Ruins of many houses surrounded him with a dense fog shortening his vision to no less than fifteen feet and beyond that, nothing but an eerie void.

"_Damn it Enra! What did you talk me into?" _He screamed inside his head. _"Ease off on the anger, youngling. How was I supposed to know they increased their defenses? Even I don't know everything." _Enra responded in mirrored manner.

"_You told me getting in would be easy; that I wouldn't even have to sneak my way in once we got here. I could have just walked right in, isn't that what you said!? Why the hell did I ever listen to you?"_

(Twelve hours ago, noon)

The ayakashi was coiled up around large rock formations spiking up out of the water. Naruto and Enra were standing atop its head looking over at a certain speck of land. "So that's it, uh?" Naruto said. Enra patted the ayakashi on its head and threw it another eel head. "That's it, the Light Country, home to over a hundred heinous criminals."

Naruto sat cross-legged and rubbed his head in thought. "So now that we're here how do we get to the prison? You said the only way to get there is by boat and two people riding a giant serpent doesn't really say discreet. We'll be seen before we even get to shore." He said, frustrated at the circumstances.

"I think you should be more concerned about what we have to go through first to even get close to the prison. Can you even guess how through the security is there?" Enra pointed to the island. Naruto's response was a blank stare and a quick shake of the head. "Well sadly for both of us, neither do I. It's been a long time since I was here last. It turns out this island has some of the best fishing spots in the northern hemisphere."

Naruto's stare kept on. "Alright, alright, back then the island had three perimeters in the form of rings making up the island up to the prison. The first ring wrecked homes and shops mainly used for target practice. The second has civilians and guards living together for the sake of protection, in case someone _actually_ escapes Nine Hells. The third has the highest measures taken for both protection and assault on both sides. On top of that all three rings are constantly inspected by island patrol, using methods I would love to know myself. All in all, we should focus more on getting to land first and then we can worry about how we get to the prison." Enra said.

Naruto groaned and laid back, "So, how do we get to the island? You have any ideas?"

Enra gave him a smile Naruto saw looked all too familiar. "I have one idea but you're not going to like it." Naruto could hear Yunika laughing and he didn't like it one bit.

The shores were silent, a fresh mist gliding over the water. The waves going through the motions as the tide ebbed and flowed like a peaceful lullaby. As the next big wave landed, the water exploded and a monstrous scaly head forced itself on land. The waters receded and an ayakashi opened its great maw, releasing a sickly Naruto from its depths.

The ayakashi retreated into the water and Naruto shuddered at his newest experience. "I never…ever…want to do that….again, as long as I live." He muttered and wiped off the beast's saliva. _"I did say you weren't going to like it."_ Enra said. _"Now that we're here, I think I would be best to keep to the main river until we get to the lake where the prison is. We can form a new plan when we get there."_

Naruto removed the last of the spit and made for the river. "Fine, but next time let's go for something that doesn't involve me getting eaten. The last thing I need is-" He was cut off by a loud clicking sound beneath his feet. _"Oh no, stop!" _Enra screamed. "Uh?" Naruto said not understanding. His body froze an instant after Enra heard the click and possessed him at the last second.

Naruto struggled for control and in response Enra appeared in a smoke cloud with eyes in front of Naruto's face. "Don't try to resist, if you move you will die." He told him. Naruto stopped, "What do you mean die?"

"I mean don't move." The cloud moved down to see what made the noise. Naruto's body moved with the cloud and Enra used Naruto's hand to carefully brush away some of the sand, revealing something metallic. "It's a land mine, looks recently new." Enra analyzed. "It doesn't matter if it's new or not. Can you do anything about it?"

Enra slipped inside the mine and came back out after a minute. "It may look new but it's an older model. This one has explosives put inside a small metal canister with a paper bomb placed on top. The mine has a pressure switch attached to the side so when someone steps on one the switch touches the paper bomb and completes the circuit, arming the device. When the pressure is removed, it goes off."

"So you know about it, which means you know how to disarm it?" The cloud returned to the scarf, giving Naruto control over his movement again. _"It's quite easy. Right now the mine is ready to detonate, but as long as there is weight holding down the trigger and it is handled safely it won't go off. Yunika, if you would?"_

Yunika asked for control and Naruto willingly gave it. She slowly dug the mine out from around his foot and put a thumb on the pressure switch. Taking Naruto's foot off it, she allowed him to get a long look at it. It was as Enra described it: a metal disk with a paper bomb on top and a thin piece of metal on the side connected with a spring, the end of it pressed against the paper bomb.

"_Take some wire from the pouch at your back. Wrap it around the trigger, tightly, and make sure you tie it properly. When you do, get rid of it. Enra, take to the air and watch for anything. People, traps, whatever it may be. You haven't been here in a long time; there will be some new things that we'll need to keep an eye out for."_ She instructed.

Naruto tied the trigger up and looked at Enra as he made himself one with the mist and scoured the area. Naruto looked down at the mine with a curious look in his eyes. _"What are you thinking about, young one?"_ Yunika asked. "I say we keep it, might be useful later." He replied.

"_That's a horrible idea! What if it goes off while you're carrying it?"_ She said in an agitated tone. "Hey, look at it this way, we don't have a lot at our disposal, we could use the extra firepower. I think it would be a good idea to pick up as many as we can take." Naruto's voice carried a tone that ended the conversation and Yunika didn't argue the point further as he placed it in his bag.

Enra coached Naruto through a path by memory but because of the changes done to the island the path became more complex and confusing, some paths forked and other paths were blocked due to ruins. More than once did Naruto hide from the constant patrol and more than once he was almost found out. Enra found more old traps and some new ones he knew hadn't been there before, some of which Naruto was able to secure.

It was a few hours later that everything went to hell. Enra came back and changed into his usual form. "We have a problem that's got thirty arms, legs, and it's coming right for our position." Naruto climbed up a wrecked stone fragment and peeked over it. Through the mist he faintly saw a small mass of soldiers not too far from where he was. They wore light white garments consisting of masks and filters, long robes and pants, bearing the mark of the Light Country on their uniforms. Each one carried a staff-like weapon in their hands that Naruto couldn't see clearly.

Naruto ducked down and motioned for Enra to turn back into smoke and inhabit the scarf. _"This group is bigger than the ones from before. What do you want me to do about them? I'm a good fighter but even I know I can't fight that many unknowns."_ He thought to the both of them.

"_I don't know about that. This might be a good opportunity to see how well they fight in this age from how they fought in my time. Not to mention it's also a good way for me to stretch my limbs." _Enra replied. _"Hold on, you want me to fight them?"_ Enra sounded confident as he said, _"Not so much you, per say."_ And he explained his plan.

As the group of soldiers came around a bend in the path they saw Naruto leaning against a broken wall in his demon sage form. "Evening gentlemen." He said with a condescending smirk. One of them pointed and yelled, "Intruder!" Within seconds Naruto was surrounded by them. "Under the law of the daimyo of the Light Country, you are to be placed under arrest and brought before the powers of this land."

"That's fine and all, but I have another appointment with some higher-ups, so unless they just happen to be among one of you I'll have to put you all down." He retorted. They all looked at one another when one of them who clearly had authority over the rest stepped forward. "The intruder is resisting. I'm giving the order to use necessary force." He said and aimed his weapon at Naruto. He pushed something and electricity shot out at the end.

Naruto dropped to a knee and the shot missed, hitting the broken wall and destroying it further. Naruto's smirk grew, "Come on guys, one person isn't going to cut it. You'll have to up the difficulty if you want to beat me." Four more stepped in line with their leader and fired off more shots in rapid succession.

Naruto bobbed and weaved and every shot missed hitting the area behind him and the ground, stirring up dust and dirt. They stopped firing and waited to see their results as the dust settled. When it did Naruto was calmly standing in the middle of the shot-up ground with his hands in his pockets, like nothing happened. "I believe that it's my turn now." He said and went through some hand signs. _"__**Demon Style: Vampire Judgment.**__" _He called out in his mind and rushed at the leader.

Striking out with his palm, it impacted on the leader's chest with enough force to throw him off his feet and make him drop his weapon. In Naruto's eyes he saw the leader's aura was the closest match to his own and when the moment the blow hit home he tried to syphon off the man's chakra and frowned when he couldn't. _Damn it, chakra network must not be infused, and I'm betting the others aren't either._ He thought.

Before the other four could ready their weapons Naruto grabbed the one on the ground and attacked them with it. In one sweep they all fell on their backs and Naruto jumped back for some breathing room. He got a better look at the staff in his hands; it had a black tip on one end and there were two buttons on it. "Let's see, one makes it shoot bursts of lightning. I wonder what this one does." He said to himself and pressed it.

The black end glowed bright yellow but nothing else happened. "Well that's anticlimactic." He muttered. One man charged him staff high above his head. Naruto saw it and jabbed the man with the glowing end with a surprising effect. When the glowing end connected he was electrocuted and was dropped. Naruto stared at it and smiled. "This is going to be fun." He said with renewed conviction.

The leader sat up and shook his head. He looked over at his men and saw them get their asses handed to them. Naruto was everywhere, the only sign being a flash of light and a scream followed by one man falling to his knees. When the screams stopped he heard Naruto's voice, "**Demon Style: Demonic Ascension.**"And he stopped in front of him with a claw under the man's chin and he looked different than before.

"I'm going to give you a choice: you can stand and fight me, I'll even wait for you to wake your men, or you can take back your wounded and wait for a better chance." He told him holding out the staff.

"Why would you do this, give your enemy a chance to recover? Why not just kill us all?" The man asked. "Because I'm not a murderer, I'm just here to meet someone. I don't care for your laws and intruder or not you guys attacked me." Naruto told him.

The man looked into Naruto's eyes and saw they were as black as night. Not seeing much of a choice, he grabbed the end and helped himself to his feet. "For the sake of your men, don't report me. No doubt I'm going to get found out again. Hope we don't run into each other again." Naruto said and ran off. As the man started to wake up the others, he looked in the general direction of the mystery man who just wiped the floor with them all.

"_I didn't do that bad, I think."_ Enra complimented himself. "_I have a feeling that the alarms are going to go off any minute now. That's going to be a problem."_ _"Don't worry about that for the time being. You're right about the alarms. Question is what's going to happen when they do."_ Yunika added.

Sure enough, Naruto heard more soldiers running around. _"It sounds like the whistle's been blown. Caution is no longer a priority. Let's get moving, I need you to give both of us control until we get to the lake."_ Enra told him, making no room for arguments. "Both of you control?" Naruto questioned and decided against asking. "Alright, do it." He said quickly.

(Present time)

"_Why the hell did I ever listen to you?"_ Naruto thought at Enra. As he thought this a bunch of footsteps told him company was on the way. Shortly after, a group bigger than the one he fought before discovered his location. _"You wanted to know why? Now we will show you why."_ Enra replied with assurance. The new batch of soldiers came in force and Enra, first taking control, proceeded in making hand signs. When he did Naruto's eyes changed color from cerulean blue to coal black.

"_**Demon Sage Art: Smoke Mirage.**__"_ He called out in his thoughts and thrust out his hands. Smoke began to come out of the sleeves of Naruto's jacket and spread through the whole crowd at an explosive rate. Those who could still see Naruto saw him laugh and become one with the smoke. Some of the men began to panic and in their panic they brought their staffs up and shoot at random. Enra laughed a cruel laugh and reformed in the center of the crowd.

He tapped on the shoulder of a poor soul who was far gone into fright and the man's reaction was taking his staff and swinging it at him on impulse. The blow should have hit Naruto on the rib cage and instead went _through_ him with no resistance and turned to smoke. Smiling as his body reformed again, Enra took his fist and struck the man in the face, putting him out.

"Come, come. Don't you know the old saying, 'you can't fight what you can't see'?" Enra said haughtily. A series of blows come from the mass smokescreen hard enough to draw blood. Those who weren't caught in the smoke could only stare and wait nervously for the outcome. Enra stopped the assault and dispelled the justu, allowing everyone to see their fallen companions.

"_More will be on the way. I won't be able to keep it up without drawing the attention of the whole island. I am sorry Naruto, but if we're going to end this quickly we're going to have to do something big."_ _"Will it kill any of them?"_ Naruto asked his thoughts stern. Enra thought about it for two seconds. _"It will hurt many of them a lot, but there will be no casualties, I can guarantee it."_

Naruto didn't say or think anything for a minute, _"How much chakra will it eat up?"_ _"More than what we can spare without damaging the seal. You know what that means."_ Enra replied with grief. Another minute passed and the soldiers advanced on Naruto as they saw him motionless over their unconscious comrades. Yunika could feel Naruto's disgust as he too knew what they had to do. She felt his agitation and revulsion grow as he yielded and thought, _"Yunika, do it."_

His eyes turned a fiery vermillion as Yunika picked up one of the men lying on the ground and bit him in the neck. At first the man awoke and screamed bloody murder, and then he quieted down as Yunika adapted his aura to match Naruto's, Naruto used the Vampire Judgment technique, taking some of the man's life energy and converting it into chakra. She dropped him and vanished, reappearing behind another unfortunate soul and they repeated the process. One of the soldiers tried to get her to stop by attacking the legs and while holding the man in her left hand she turned and grabbed the weapon with her right. The soldier fought to pull it free and Yunika squeezed and bent it, the metal easily giving in to her terrible strength. She pushed both men away and continued her onslaught.

As more people gathered to witness the horror, Yunika released her last victim and wiped the blood from her mouth. _"I have enough and there's enough people gathered around us. You're up Enra."_ She said. Ruby turned to obsidian as Enra took control once more and did another set of hand signs and clasped his hands together in the shape of a ball. "If anyone here has breathing problems, now would be a good time to run, if you haven't lost your nerve after watching that blood bath that is." He said and smiled to show some of the blood stained his teeth.

"**Demon Style: Conflagration Mist.**" He called out and bringing his hands up to his mouth he leaned back and blew inside them. Halfway through his exhale he opened his palms and a gaseous haze flew out. The soldiers halted their progression and looked amongst themselves with warning glances. The haze wafted around them, past them and the oncoming reinforcements. When it was good and thick, mixed in with the fog, Enra dropped low to the ground and pulled out two kunai. He struck them together, creating sparks which ignited the mist and created a massive wave of fire, spreading out in all directions, scorching everything it touched.

The flames were so intense the thick fog evaporated in no time at all and Naruto saw the destruction. As the wave spread people screamed in agony, many of them dropping their weapons and hands going to their faces, falling to the ground in sheer pain. People who were farther away had even worse burns than those closest to the center. Anyone who managed to find some form of cover after it passed over them started gasping for breath as though the very air had been ripped from their lungs. It went on for nearly twenty-five meters when the flames died out.

Enra relinquished control back to Naruto who saw the aftermath as people moaned in suffering. He saw some of them had more severe burns than skin while others were less serious, only out of breath or unconscious. "What was that?" He asked in dismay of what Enra just did. "_I'll explain it later, when we have more time to think and less time to run."_ Enra said.

Naruto stood frozen in place. He had seen and done lot of things but never something like this. When he fought he did so with a manner that didn't make his opponents suffer, not to watch their flesh nearly bubble off. _"You need to hurry, Naruto. We won't be able to fix the seal if you get caught before we have the sword in our hands. So snap out of it and get your ass moving!" _Yunika chewed him out.

Naruto clenched his fist and looked beyond the bodies. "Even so, which path is the right one through all this mess?" He said. _"I know a way. Use the blood. Don't you remember? It was part of Enra's plan. When I told you how you can track any creature if you have its blood and you can use my eyes to do that. Use it to back-track these men down the right way until you find the river."_ Yunika advised. The world glowed with light and Naruto looked at the blood soaked dirt.

"What do I do now? I'm not digesting any blood." He said. _"Just smell the blood, my way of tracking blood is similar to tracking scents. Each person has their own blood odor that's in tune to their life aura just as they have their own bodily scents. The scents are mingled with the person's life aura so when you take in the scent of their blood you can see faint traces of their aura lingering from it and in turn from where they have been. You'll understand better when you try it."_

Naruto took a long sniff at blood on his fingers from when Yunika attacked the soldiers from before. Ever so faintly, Naruto could see aura glowing from the blood on his hands and farther away he saw a trail of the same color of aura in the air. "It isn't clear, but I've got it." He felt better now that he could get away from…all this.

"_Glad to hear it, now let's get going."_ Enra said and took to the skies once more in his cloud form. Naruto followed the trail as best as he could while trying to forget everything he saw.

(Three hours later)

Naruto found the main river and ran alongside it for now forgetting the aura trail. Enra against the idea of bringing the ayakashi up too soon, otherwise an army will stir on the island and riot just to find him. He stayed by it as he ran, sometimes going in the water to avoid detection when he saw fishing docks and lively activity and the like. A short time later the river broadened and he found himself at the edge of a lake. Off in the distance he saw a large structure blanketed by the fog.

"That must be it. That means part one is done. Well Enra, what's the next part?" Naruto asked. Now that he had a chance to rest he washed off the blood on his body and face. Enra was next to him in human form. "Now might be a good time to bring our beastie out from the deep. We are away from the chaos and I haven't seen a soldier for a while." He said looking over at the prison.

Naruto rinsed his mouth out and spat. "I say that sounds good to me. We shouldn't waste any more time here." He switched to his thoughts. _"Yunika, how's the seal holding up?"_ Inside the cage Yunika inspected the seal. _"New small cracks have appeared in spite of what Enra pulled off. It was a good call to use that justu in preparation."_ She replied.

"Maybe for you it was, but not for me. That was worse than the first time and I wasn't even in control this time. I could never do that to a comrade, not even to save them." Naruto said growing nauseated at the thought. _"I still would have done it, suffice to say it was effective enough not only for Enra's justu, now they're down right terrified of us for it." _Yunika stated absolutely.

"Now, now, let's save the temper for the enemy shall we?" Enra said able to hear their conversation with the scarf around Naruto's neck. Naruto gave him a quick glare and turned his attention towards the lake. "So are you going to fish for it again? It might take a while like last time." Naruto commented. Enra had his fishing rod out and ready. "Yes, on the other hand though it shouldn't take as long. It wasn't long ago that we parted ways, and the fact that I made you ingest its blood should help in a bit." He said.

Naruto gave Enra another angry look, "Even after what I just went through I still have to ask, what does that mean?" Enra made his cast and sighed. "It means that once the blood has run its course you can summon the ayakashi wherever you are. However, even if you didn't have that problem with the cracking seal, it would not be a good idea to try it here." He explained.

Naruto crocked an eyebrow, "Why's that, it doesn't like the water here?" Enra smiled cryptically. "No, it's nothing as trivial as that. The answer is simple: it's too big." He admitted. Both eyebrows were up. "It's too big?" Enra sat down and slipped an arm into his robes. "That's right, too big. Like I said before, ayakashi are gentle giants from the bottom of the sea. So giant in fact, that it could coil around this whole island ten times, raise its head at one end and still be seen from the other. So trying to summon that here in this lake would be catastrophic."

He yawned in boredom, "That would be a problem for some time though. Still, until you get that seal fixed I think it would be best that you didn't attempt it." He finished. Naruto looked down at his reflection as the water settled.

He saw his appearance had been altered further. Before, his yellow hair was paler and longer, his whisker marks less visible, ears slightly pointed and he grew taller. Now his hair was completely white and down past his shoulders, the marks on his cheek were gone. His ears were pointier and when he stood up and leaned over, he notably gained a few more inches in height.

_The changes are becoming more aggressive, I wonder what that means. After our earlier battles and what Yunika and Enra did to those people…_ He looked down at his hands. Even with the blood gone he could still feel it on his hands in his mind. _What am I turning into?_

Enra's line pulled the demon to his feet. "Get ready youngling. Our ride is about to surface." He said toying with the idea of handing the pole to Naruto again. Naruto got serious and jumped to his feet. "Right, let's get this thing going!" He exclaimed and the water before them exploded with a great force as something big and scaly broke the surface.

**A/N:** Alright, so how's this one?

First few decent fight scenes in a while. I thought Yunika's temper and Enra's foreknowledge might be of use in this chapter. I honestly had a blast writing this one and the one before it that I messed up on some things mentioned in the previous author's note last chapter, so I'll be going with my original plan and put them in one part at a time (Note: this whole thing will have five, two for Naruto, two for Kakashi's group and one where the two groups meet, so expect a fun reunion.).

Here is the list of justu performed in this chapter (Note: the first to Naruto did NOT do and they are not the ones he is learning from Enra. These two belong to Enra and he can only do them when he has possessed Naruto.). As always, R&R!

New Justu:

**Demon Sage Art: Smoke Mirage**: This is the sage art that combines Enra's bodily powers and form with Naruto's body, giving Enra full possession. When active Enra covers the area with his smoke and becomes one with it. Any blows that would cause harm instead go right through him and can solidify parts of the body to do physical damage when he wants to. The technique doesn't require much chakra at first but it does vary depending on how big the smoke cloud is.

**Demon Style: Conflagration Mist**: This justu, obviously a fire-based justu, works best depending on the surrounding environment. When Enra possess Naruto and uses this justu he brings his hands together and blows gas into them. When he opens his hands the gas is released and moves through the area at a high speed. When the gas has spread far enough he need only to make a spark and makes a fiery wave of destruction that grows more powerful over the distance. Made of flames so hot, they burn exposed skin instantly and/or literally takes the enemy's breath away, leaving them unable to fight back. Chakra use is similar to Smoke Mirage: the farther the wave goes on, and the more chakra is needed to sustain it.

Old Justu:

**Demon Style: Vampire Judgment**: A supposed ancient technique, it allows the caster to steal the chakra away from people by using chakra links and transforms their body upon multiple uses. Though currently unable to use it fully, Naruto has managed to utilize Yunika's gift to change aura to master it to this point and is still an incomplete justu. More will be revealed.

**Demon Style: Demonic Ascension**: A justu Naruto named. This justu activates when Vampire Judgment has been cast and he and Yunika join minds so instead of the normal fangs, claws and blood-red eyes, her features mix in with the previous technique. This grants Naruto some of her current physical traits such as increased strength, high-speed movement, heightened sight and hearing (seeing auras and hearing heartbeats), and when she has control over Naruto's body these traits double in function. Justu only lasts as long as stamina does; the longer in this form, the less time Naruto has to fight.


	16. Class is in Session: Part III

**A/N: **I had some doubts as to how some would react to the violence of the fight and the new techniques. Most of the battle was thought up on a whim, and I am a little surprised that no one has made any quirks about Naruto being a demon vampire yet. Not really much else to say as to the repeating fact of so few reviewers making themselves heard, so I can only speculate how the story so far has been in your eyes. But enough of that, no one wants to read about my thoughts on your thoughts.

In this we get to meet the rest of Shobo's crew, I place a surprise onboard that's to be expected, Kakashi and Mizu have a thoughtful chat, and our favorite ninjas get more than they bargained for. :)

This takes place just after Shobo's ship leaves port. Let's see where it goes today.

Class is in Session: Part III

(Dusk, with Kakashi and Shikamaru's group)

Shobo had everyone up on deck in a row to properly size them up, Mizu was working the wheel and Yuki was keeping lookout up in the crow's nest. He had the look of a drill sergeant, chest puffed out, back kept straight and head held high. "Alright, if you lot are going to be on my ship there some rules to follow and that goes for you too Baba." He said sternly. Baba merely rolled her eyes and ran a hand down Mata's back as she held him in her arms.

"You are what I like to call "flesh cargo," and when we get encounters of the unwanted sort you will follow my instructions to the letter. When the tides are calm you will assist where necessary on this vessel, she may be just a ship to you but whether or not that is the case the fact remains that she is a piece of history that must be well maintained." He stopped in front of Kakashi. "First things first, we need to get you all some new rags. Don't want to be recognized do you?" He said smiling.

Moments later the group was in their new garments, all in the Captain's colors. Shobo told everyone that the men's clothing would bear no difference from his crewmates or each other and the same was to be for the women, with the exception of some unique changes. It would help enforce the idea that they were part of his ship's crew and not simple stowaways. The men were back on deck waiting for Sakura, Ino and Hinata to finish changing.

The men wore clothing like Mizu and Yuki with some add-ons: Kakashi had a white bandana tied in such a fashion that it covered his left eye and had on part of his old uniform used to cover his face. Itachi had a black vest over his black shirt with half a dozen small pockets inside the vest. Kisame was bare-chested with Samehama at his back and two bags hanging at his side. Shikamaru took out the band in his hair and wore a fish-net shirt instead of the standard black, and he had on a pair of goggles and a breath mask hanging around his neck. Lee, against his wishes, removed his green jumpsuit but was able to keep his leg warmers and weights along with a pair of weighted armbands supplied by Shobo.

Lee was fiddling with his new boots and Mizu rapped his knuckles on his head. "I don't want you messing around with those." He said. Lee stomped the deck boards a couple of times, "They are heavier than they look." Lee said trying a few moves with them. "Most of what the Captain has for his business, his uniforms, his equipment, weapons; they're custom made by separate people piece by piece so no ties can be made back to us. Take your footwear for example: there's a mechanism inside that produces spikes on the toe, sides, and bottom of the boot. That's why they are so heavy." Mizu explained in a bored voice.

Shobo walked over to the open door beneath the bridge and hollered down, "Baba, how much longer?" Her voice came out from the depths of the hull. "Hold your horses, we're coming up now." Mata jumped out first in his normal form followed by Baba wearing sea-blue robes with her cane. "Are you boys ready? Ok girls, come on out." She yelled down.

Ino, Sakura and Hinata all stepped out into the light of the sun in their new, and slightly provocative, clothing showing more of their figures than being used as disguises. They all had on blue bandanas, white vests with hoods over blue low cut tops showcasing their assets, blue shorts and a light modification of the crew's footwear.

Sakura was fuming at the wardrobe, "I get that we're supposed to be in hiding for the time being, but that doesn't mean we should be shown off. They're just too…bare." Ino had let her hair down and was running her hands through it. "I don't know, I think I pull it off pretty well." She said and modeled a bit. Hinata hadn't stopped blushing since she stepped onto the deck. "It is a little brazen." Hinata said adjusting her clothes.

Shobo applauded at the girl's new look. "Think what you will, you three look stunning. You can thank our sea mistress for the clothing, whom you shall meet shortly." Mizu leaned in close to Shikamaru. "He's only saying that because we don't have many female shipmates." He whispered.

Shobo jumped onto the bridge and took hold of the wheel. "Alright now that we have that settled, it's time to get down to business. Mizu, prepare the rope ladders! Yuki, status report!"

Yuki looked down at his Captain and shouted, "Two rafts in sight, looks to be ours." Shobo's face turned to confusion. "Only two…let me guess, Shihi is missing again?" He asked. Yuki adjusted the range finder. "That's affirmative."

Shobo slapped the wheel in anger. "Damn her to the deep! She's always doing this, running off and missing the rendezvous." Kakashi climbed up to the crow's nest and looked out to the sea.

"Who's this Shihi person?" He asked Yuki. Yuki didn't move as he answered, "Shihi is her name but everyone calls her Hi, except for the Captain when he gets mad at her, so that's most of the time. She is the second-in-command on the ship and possibly the best navigator Shobo, or anyone else on the ship for that matter, has ever seen. She is brilliant and her mind is only matched by her beauty. Because of her personality though, she drives the Captain near the brink. Still, we need her skills in order to get to the Light Country unnoticed. After all, technically you're all stowaways being secretly shipped to that place, right?"

"That about covers it for the time being. How long will it be until you're ready?" Kakashi asked. Yuki turned his eyes to Kakashi, then back to watch the boats. "Once we have everyone and the cargo on board, we can go." He replied in monotone and jumped down onto the deck.

Shobo instructed Shikamaru and Kisame on securing the boats to the ship and bringing them up. They weren't very big; they carried two people each and some barrels that made sloshing sounds as they were moved. Shikamaru noticed this while he pulled on a rope and he pointed them out. "What's in those barrels, Shobo? I'm guessing they aren't rations for our trip."

Shobo smiled mischievously, "You're right on the money, but I can't say yet. If we get into trouble though, I'll gladly shed some light on it." Someone hollered from overboard, "Ahoy, Captain! What's with the new recruits? You getting tired of us already?" Four people jumped on board, one of them all the way to the crow's nest.

When they all got aboard the gang got a good look at them. Like the rest of the crew their uniforms were similar, yet different. One was a man bigger than Shobo and made quite a crash because when he landed he shook the whole ship. He wore nothing above the waist save a black stone mask that covered his entire head that had two holes for his eyes, one for his mouth and a horn on the forehead. A multitude of scars were laid about all over his skin telling stories of past battles and on one particular spot was a tattoo forming a mountain.

The one who jumped to the crow's nest jumped back down and landed on the mountain man's shoulder. It was a young man with white hair who had some metal contraption attached to his legs and a large bag on his back. He also had a white bandana around his neck with a wind design on it. His eyes, Shikamaru noticed, were a pale color of red. _Red eyes and white hair…looks like this one's an albino. I wonder what his story is._ Shikamaru thought.

The other two were both women of identical styles and beauty. They had high-heeled boots ending at their knees, short blue skirts and white tops with shrouds hanging down from gold pins on the straps of their tops. They looked as though they had been carved from stone, like their bodies their faces were flawless. Looking at them was like looking at a mirror; they had the same waist-long raven black hair, same opal-colored eyes, only a tattoo just under one's left eye and the other's right eye told them apart: a crescent moon and a star.

"Besides two others, this is my crew. The mountain with flesh is Tsuchi, the one on his shoulder is Kaze and the girls are Hoshi and Tsuki. The two that are missing are Hi, my ship's navigator and Garasu, battle-master and tactician. My crew operates in a two-man team when on the mainland and the pairings are made to assist each other's skills. However," Shobo said frowning at the water. "They all work best together, but I'm about ready to send a few straight to Hell as my patience can only be tried for so long. Where the hell are they?"

An hour came and went before any new activity began. Most of the crew was resting somewhere, keeping watch for the last two people, or down below. The ninja were learning as much about the workings of the ship when they heard a commotion. While putting the barrels with the rest of the cargo and inspecting the rest of the ship, Hoshi and Tsuki came out from below deck holding two squirming children in their arms. "Hey Captain, look what we found hiding in some crates." Hoshi said now struggling to keep her grip.

The rest of the crew and the ninja came to see what was going on. Shobo approached the kids with a smirk. "Let's take a look at our stowaways." It was a young boy and girl with black hair and golden eyes, both of them were in rags. "It appears we have a couple of orphaned street rats in our midst. What are your names?" He grabbed the boy's chin and yanked his head up when the child looked away. He glared at Shobo with anger. "It's Nagi. The girl is my sister, Nami."

Shobo released Nagi's face and squatted down to eye level. "Now, what would two young pups like you be doing on my ship? Not for a sea cruise I take it." He said. Nagi forced himself out of Hoshi's hands but she made no move to grab him.

"I and my sister have been on the road for a long time, but not by our choice. We had a loving family when our father went missing one day and we have looked everywhere we can, trying to find him. We were in town when I heard a rumor that he was in the Light Country." The boy said.

"And so, what, you think to find a boat that will take you to such a place?" Shobo said. Nagi's eyes switched from Shobo to Baba who was looking over his shoulder then back to the Captain. "I saw what she did to a man who was paid to kill her. I overheard the conversation and that's how I found out she was looking for you. When you and the rest of them went to the shipyard, all we had to do was found out which ship you were using and sneak aboard." Nagi told him.

Mata walked up to Nami and rubbed his body against her then sniffed her brother. He ran to Baba and jumped onto her shoulders and whispered something in her ears. "Mata says he's telling the truth; the child's scent matches the one he smelled out when we first got on the ship." She confirmed.

Shobo stroked his beard, a smug expression still on his face. "So what's stopping me from throwing you both over the side? We're still close to the mainland so unless you can't swim very well, you should give me a good reason to keep you around."

Sakura spoke up against Shobo's actions, "Hold on a second, I thought you said you didn't take innocent lives?" Shobo replied with his back to her, "I'm not killing them; I'm just giving them the idea of going for a long swim." Kakashi stepped forward and calmly placed his hand on Nagi's head. "Why not let them just come with us? There's no harm in it is there?" He asked with his one eye smiling.

Shobo rose from his spot and jabbed Kakashi in the chest with a finger. "Because of another rule I have: No. Stowaways." He replied his finger punctured the last two words and was surprised to see Mizu stand beside him. "I'm with him on this one. We have more than enough supplies to handle two little sprouts like them and besides, any kid brave enough to knowingly sneak onto the Blue Drunkard with us here, has to be bold enough to know what he's getting into." He said.

Shobo was surprised at his words and then laughter burst out from his mouth, "What's come over you man? You're normally so nonchalant about things that don't concern the ship or the job. What's so special about these two?" Then he heaved a sigh and shrugged, shaking his head with a grin. "Never mind, don't tell me. Have it your way." Yuki yelled from the bow, "Last of the boats are in sight Captain…it's them."

Captain Shobo then smiled a wild smile, "Well, I go from a new itch I can't scratch to an old one." Mizu joined Yuki at the bow to see two hooded figures each holding a large satchel in one hand. Shikamaru and Kisame once again hauled the boat and it's passengers up and secured it to the ship. Once of the new comers removed their head cover revealing the face of a woman with violet eyes and a head of hair fierier than Shobo's and three times as long, nearly touching the boards she stood on. Shobo's sapphire eyes flashed in anger when he saw the bags she and the other person carried.

"Damn it all Shihi! What's the latest excuse you have THIS time for being late? We have new business of late if you haven't noticed." He bellowed. The newly introduced Hi tossed her load at Shobo's feet. "Take a look in there if you want your excuse." She said. At first he didn't move. His gaze was still on Hi when he finally reached for the bag and untied it, putting a hand inside and pulled out a small sapphire.

"I made some trades while I was away. I saw these and they made me think of your eyes." She said and gave her hair a toss. Shobo's eyes changed from anger to skepticism. "Where did you get these?" Hi walked past him and up to Itachi with her eyes sparkling at the dark-haired man. "That isn't important, what is important is that you said we have new business."

Shobo slammed his hand against his face and Mizu went to Hi and explained. Once caught up she put an arm around Itachi and traced her finger on his chest. "So, we are transporting these fine people to the place you hate most in the world? Sounds like fun," She said caressing Itachi's face, which did nothing to stop her. "What's the pay for this job?" Hi asked.

Shobo nursed his face from the pain of his hand hitting it too hard. "Baba here insists that the pay will be supplied by the island, which means everything we find not nailed to the floor that's of value, is up for grabs. Now that we finally have everybody together, Shihi, Garasu, you two add your haul to inventory and then, you can deal with these two." He said pointing his thumb at Nagi and Nami.

Hi cried out in delight, pushing herself off Itachi and ran to the kids. "Oh I just love darling little children, but what are they doing on the ship? They didn't come with the group we have now did they?" Shobo ran a hand through his hair with a pained look on his face, "It's annoying, but long story short they'll be with us for a time."

He clapped his hands together twice to get his crew's attention. "Alright, you all know what to do, now get to it. We head north until starlight fills the sky, then we rest in shifts. Passengers will partner up with crew members and assist in any way possible."

Hi and Garasu took Nagi and Nami below with their bags in hand. Kaze leaped off Tsuchi and landed next to Shobo who was standing at the helm. "Okay, listen up! You know who we are, but we don't know who you are. Let's remedy that. Everyone will be working on tasks while you're all on the ship. For starters, you three," He pointed at Ino, Sakura and Hinata. "Are going to help me and Tsuchi prepare for the venture and after that, each one of you will take a position on the ship and keep watch." He started.

"Kakashi and Kisame will help Mizu and Yuki with the preparation and workings of the ship's offense. Lee and Itachi will help Hoshi and Tsuki with readying defense. It's always best to have more of the sword and shield when lacking. I'll need to speak with the Shikamaru boy to evaluate our combined skills." Shobo finished.

"We have all night and the whole day after to get an idea of what we're getting ourselves into. First things first we drop off our flesh cargo, and then we get to work! Now let's get to it!" Shobo thrust his fist in the air and his crew hooped and hollered and started running around the ship.

Kaze pointed out places for the girls to be and Tsuchi worked on unfurling the sails alongside them. Kaze jumped up from the first mast to the second, untying them from a height. Once opened up the four on the ground tied them to pegs. Mizu and Yuki showed Kakashi and Kisame the various weapons and cannons they had aboard and besides Shikamaru the rest of them went to the lower levels of the ship and everyone went to their long working tasks.

(Midnight)

The sounds of the sea were sweet to Mizu's ears. He was leaning on the side of the ship facing the water with a bottle of sake in one hand. He took a swig from it, corked it and threw it behind him. What he expected to hear, the loud crash of it breaking on the wood, he didn't and he smiled. "Care to join me in a drink," He looked back to see someone holding the bottle in their hands. "Kakashi?"

Right on the money, Kakashi walked up to Mizu and handed him the bottle, "It's been a long time Zabuza." Mizu sighed and took the bottle back. "How long did it take you to figure it out?" "Well, to be honest, first it was the skin. Not many people have that tone. The second thing was the boy. He may be older and his hair is cut, but he still looks a lot like Haku did three years ago." Kakashi said.

Mizu popped off the top and had another drink and turned around to look at the activity on the ship. Hi was at the bridge working the helm with a tall black-haired man standing next to her. If Hoshi and Tsuki bodies were carved from marble, Hi's was made from diamond and what she had on only emphasized that fact.

Most of her hair was tied up with it ending just above her waist and styled with a headband bejeweled with rubies helping her bangs to frame her face. Her arms were adorned with bangles that clinked together with each movement. Unlike the others, she wore a red dress tightly-fitting her curves with a single strap over her right shoulder and two slits in the front running all the way up to her hips and another adaption of Shobo's footwear in the form of high-heeled boots.

The man next to her had shoulder-length black hair and black eyes and the lower part of his face was covered by a metal mask made in a reptilian design. He wore a long sleeveless overcoat over a black long sleeve shirt and black pants. His arms were crossed over his chest and watched the skies with a focused eye on the stars.

Up in the crow's nest Hinata was using her Byakugan to keep watch for anything notable and Kaze was with her, sitting on the edge and tools in hand working on the metal on his legs. Off near the bow Lee, Sakura and Ino were playing with the young twins, passing the time and keeping their minds occupied. The cargo bay doors were open and Kisame, Shikamaru, Tsuchi, and their Captain were surrounding it and a box of tools on the side. Clanging sounds could be heard coming from its depths and a hand shot up in the air. Shobo grabbed one piece from the box and gave it to Shikamaru, who took it and jumped down into the hole.

"Good now take that and attach it to there...no a little to the left…no, no, MY left. Good now slowly turn it to the right. That's it, now have Itachi hold that piece there while I take this and…wait, wait, not yet!" A woman's voice screamed out and a small explosion followed, a cloud of smoke erupted from below and Shobo groaned and slapped his hand to his face again.

Mizu waved a hand towards the growing plume, "Though they don't look it, Hoshi and Tsuki are the minds behind our mechanical weapons. They've been working on a new one for weeks, trying to get it to function. Yuki's been helping but they haven't gotten it up and running yet. Maybe that kid genius might be able to do something about it."

"Maybe," Kakashi replied. His mind went straight to the topic that tormented him since he first saw the man. So he took a deep breath and asked, "What happened to you Zabuza? Last time I saw you, you were at the bridge, and you were dying." Mizu turned his head to look at Kakashi eye-to-eye. "How did you survive?"

Mizu was quiet, he swirled the drink around as the sounds of the others working filled the air. "There's a time and place for that particular story, but it isn't here and now. Only a few people know that I'm alive and for the time being I want to keep it that way," Kakashi started but Mizu raised a hand for silence.

"The main reason is because the world sees me dead and here, right here, is the only place where that doesn't matter. I haven't changed, I'm given a job and I'll see it through to the end unless told otherwise. Not to mention I owe the Captain, in a matter of speaking, for giving me what I have."

Kakashi watched Mizu as he talked. _He sounds sincere._ He thought. "If you're really that curious about it, then when I know we're alone, when no one who knows about me is around, I'll tell you." Mizu finished. Another small explosion rocked the ship from the inside. The two men heard a woman curse and saw Hoshi leap out onto the deck, covered in grease and soot.

Mizu burst out laughing, causing her to glare daggers at him. "Well, at least she came out looking better than she did the last time they tried. If I had a buck for every time that happened to her little 'toys,' I could buy this ship and three others like it from Shobo."

Kakashi chuckled at first, and then joined Mizu in full-blown laughter. Yuki poked his head out curious at what the laughter was. When he saw the where it was coming from, when he saw the smile his old master had as he held a conversation with an old enemy, a ghost of a smile appeared on his face and he got back to work.

**A/N:** Well, how about that?

First, sorry for the wait but I thank you all for being patient. I've just been busy with work and other projects. Not everyone lives their life on this site.

Hope everyone can imagine the new get-ups; honestly it didn't take long to think them up. A deeper look into Shobo's crew will reveal that their names _should_ have meaning to what they can do (Note that my Japanese translations are still rusty). Some curious thought as to what weapons they have onboard, especially the newest piece in the cargo bay and the stowaways they discovered, the little twins (Those who've done their homework might already know who I've based them on).

Some people will have questions about what happened to Zabuza and Haku and why it is that I haven't said anything about it yet. Don't worry, it will be told soon and from necessary points of view.

Next chapter we will see how well they handle the 'smuggling,' they catch the aftermath of a bloody clash, and we see what happens when someone throws the monkey wrench into the works, and as always, R&R.


	17. Class is in Session: Part IV

**A/N:** Well, I think last chapter went swimmingly (pun intended). Not a lot of feedback so far on it, so I'm taking it as a good sign, writer's pride and all that. Not much more to say here save for the usual. Here I have a little fun engaging in the first water battle and I finally introduce Goturo to everyone. Let's see how it ends in the newest installment.

Class is in Session: Part IV

(A day in a half later, dawn, aboard the Blue Drunkard)

The sun was just rising over the blue horizon when our group saw the island come into view. Shobo was up at the bow with Mizu and Yuki. "There it is men, the Light Country. Our prize rests here, IF Baba is right." In his right hand was a dawn breaker with a piece of paper attached to its leg. He let it go and it flew off, disappearing within moments.

Baba walked up to Shobo with a mysterious look in her eyes. "IF I'm right? I might have been insulted if we hadn't known each other for so long. That being said, I assume you have a plan?" She inquired. "Hah, you should know the best way to hide something," He said pointing at Baba's cane and smiled. Itachi and Kakashi approached Shobo with concerned thoughts.

"Shobo, we've been wondering the same thing for the past day as to what you plan on doing. Itachi and Kisame are being expected by this Goturo to have Naruto in hand. I don't doubt that the island will have been put on alert for the both of them so it's my guess that they will have heightened security. On top of that we're on a pirate ship used for smuggling I don't want to know about that's en route to the same place where no likely they don't tolerate smugglers." Kakashi said.

"I know Baba trusts you but that still needs to be shown to the rest of us. We need you to tell us what you have in mind. It affects us all if we get stopped before we make it to the prison. We won't know what to expect if Baba is right about the newly made defenses, especially if you haven't been here recently." Itachi said.

Shobo raised his hands in surrender. "Relax boys. I have done this before and with the same island more than a dozen times. But if you insist…" He turned to Hi who was at the helm. "Shihi, remain this course and keep careful of the usual problems. Everyone not a part of the crew will gather 'round and listen up. You all have a role to play here. Things are going to be a little different on this run." And he told them his plan.

(One hour later)

Island security was making its daily rounds. On the edge of the island there are twelve specks of land, each one having a guard tower with two spotlights and connected to the island by way of stone bridges. One guardsman was watching out for any boats when his eye caught the waving flag of the Blue Drunkard.

Shortly afterwards, three small boats each with four people inside rowed out from the island and approached the ship. One of the men who looked the most official had a wooden megaphone in his hand. "Approaching vessel, please stop and prepare to be boarded. This is your only warning." After the sails were pulled the ship slowed to a stop and was surrounded. Mooring lines were attached to the ship and four men climbed aboard.

Hi, Garasu and Shobo were the first on the scene to greet the new comers. "Captain Shobo, always a pleasure. What brings you to our island this time?" One of the men asked. "Just delivering some cargo, have to make a living somehow." Shobo replied. "Well, for one reason or another, you know the rules. We have to check your ship, just running procedure." The patrolman said.

Shobo shrugged and allowed the men to search his ship. They had everyone brought up on deck for a head count. One of the patrolmen asked, "Hey Shobo, when'd you get more people? I don't imagine that this ship needs more than eight to run it effectively." Shobo easily replied, "Hired help. I'm going to be handling a lot of fresh cargo soon and thought I could use the extra hands, so I got five more for the job." (Note: Five will have meaning later.)

Nothing raised any eyebrows until one of them found one of the barrels the crew brought aboard earlier. "What is in these barrels?" One man asked. "Just pearls being kept in seawater, helps keep the shine. You're free to check it of course." Shobo answered coolly.

He opened it up and inside there was small white orbs, and tossed one over to the patrolman who casually caught it. After looking it over the patrolman seemed satisfied and tossed it back. "Alright everything looks in order. I'm going to have to ask you to gather all of your crew members and disarm all weapons on your vessel."

A suspicious look came over Shobo's face. "Why the change in security? Was there an incident?" He asked. "Something like that. We had an intruder make a lot of noise last night, but it's been dealt with. However we have had to up security measures, for safety reasons." He explained. "Good to know the lord of the land is well protected." Shobo said dully.

"We'll be escorting you the rest of the way until you can make port at the necessary drop-off points. I'll have some of my people assist in the handling of the deliveries. Let's get moving." He waved down at the two boats in preparation to move. The Blue Drunkard made for the main river and was joined by two more boats each with five men wearing the island's colors. Two men jumped into the empty boat and two from the other four boats climbed aboard Shobo's ship as they moved on, ready to follow any given orders.

Once they landed to the first dock Shobo barked out orders to his crew and several of the patrolmen which items to remove and which to leave. Some items raised eyebrows, such as unidentifiable scraps of metal in one box and large quantities of sandpaper in another, but no one spoke up against it. After all, would _you_ argue if you helped in searching the ship?

As they made their stops Shikamaru who was up in the crow's nest, paid attention to the land and its people. He saw dozens upon dozens of men in uniform, injured and bloody. Medical tents were set up and doctors were rushing to deal with the overflow of the injured and dying. Some had severe burns on their bodies while others looked aghast, their faces held looks of mortal terror. _It must have been one hell of a fight to do all this damage and scare all these people._

With each stop they drew closer and closer to the prison, the motions going unnoticed by the patrolmen. After a while a pair of eyes strayed to the growing structure and wittingly registered it by announcing it as such, "Is it just me, or is the ship coming closer to the prison?" The leader whipped his head around to see, turned back to Shobo with a tense look.

"I don't recall there being any items meant for Nine Hells prison on the manifest, Shobo. Why are we going there?" Shobo, who was at the helm, spread a wicked smile that the man didn't get. "Oh, it's not something that we're dropping off. More like something that we're picking up."

A flag flew up and bodies moved in a flash, staffs were drawn and fists were put up. Shobo had Hi and Garasu at his side with Baba just behind and her hands holding the two children, at the bow was Kaze, Tsuchi, and Itachi, along the port and starboard sides were Hinata, Ino, Sakura, Hoshi, Tsuki, and Lee. "Before we get things started let me ask, Are you lord's men or do you all work for the warden?" Shobo shouted.

Their eyes shifted from one to another. "What does that have to do with any of this?" The man demanded. Shobo's grin grew bigger. "Because your answer will decide the fate of your comrades; while I make it a rule not to take innocent lives and my cohorts and I have an understanding about that, they will strike you down faster than the wind carries the storms...IF you are not honorable men."

Hesitation followed by a grim silence. The patrolmen's leader cursed and raised his staff higher. "I'm sorry, but as the law of this land dictates we must bring you in." He said. The absolution in his words satisfied Shobo. _A lord's man it is…_ "Alright then, you heard 'em. Let's begin phase one."

(One hour ago)

"The problem won't be getting you in unnoticed. That won't be a part of the plan." Shobo said explaining what he had in mind. "I make a living being known as a cargo runner when people need it and I've been here over a dozen times delivering items, so I know a thing or two about their security. Baba and I have worked together to make a plan that bests suits the abilities of our company."

Baba tapped her cane to gain everyone's attention. "There will be four phases to the plan. Phase one will be engagement: they will send out some small boats with a three-to-five men party in each one to verify the cargo with the ship's manifest. Once they have, and if they are in agreement with the manifest, they will escort the ship to each port that needs said items, give them the pay in equal amounts to the cargo brought, and send them on their way. We will take advantage of that." She said.

Shobo pointed to the prison off in the distance. "We won't be able to pull of the ruse before we get to Nine Hells. None of the items in question have to go there so when their leader checks the list and realizes the ship's heading towards it, things are going to get lively."

(Present time)

_Fourteen against twelve…_ Shobo asked over his shoulder, "Baba, would you be kind enough as to make the first move?" Baba did her trademark wide grin and reached in her robes. Mata, sitting on her shoulder, whispered in her ear and she looked at him like he just coughed up a hairball on her. She whispered something back that Shobo managed to hear and shuddered at the words, "No, you can't eat them. We need them alive."

She pulled out two vials both containing a green acidic-looking liquid. "I thought all of your weapons were removed." The leader exclaimed. Baba looked at him with an honest face. "Oh these aren't weapons my dear. They are bottles of tonic I've been experimenting with. It's hardly lethal, so far that is." She said and threw them at the middle of the ship. "Everybody masks on!" Shobo shouted.

Green smoke burst out from the glass containers and enveloped both crew members and lord's men within seconds. The sound of coughing filled the air and not long after the sound of bodies dropping soon followed. The smoke cleared after three minutes and the sight of a dozen local officials on the ground pleased Baba.

Nagi pulled at Baba's sleeve with a worried look, "They're not…" Baba patted the girl's head gently. "No child, they are alive. I am a master of the cauldron after all. If I didn't know what I was doing I wouldn't have lived this long." Shobo had his men check the fallen soldiers with Sakura and Ino heading the inspection. All of them had survived and were bound with rope, then placed off to the side.

Lee and Itachi placed the last of the men with the others. Lee brushed his hands together. "Well that takes care of that. Now what happens?" Shobo looked over at the water, "Now we wait to see if the boys below have taken care of the second part."

(One hour ago)

While the Blue Drunkard was being boarded, more people were watching it from the guard towers and the shoreline. When it started moving again, three more boats secretly tailed them at a distance. Holding six in each, four of them had underwater gear ready, a diver's knife strapped to their thighs, and two long and strange-looking rifles on their backs.

They kept two ports away from the ship as the deliveries were made, always watching for any suspicious activity. When the ship stopped aiming for the docks and continued onward down the river, the men started to get antsy and rowed faster. When a cloud of green smoke exploded on the ship, a signal was given and twelve men dove into the water from the boats following the Blue Drunkard.

(Present time)

The divers swam like sharks after blood and closed in on the rudder. As they swam closer they each pulled out a scroll and opened them, sticking them to the back and bottom of the ship. Before they could use them one of their men was attacked and part of his body covered in ice.

The others looked over where the attack came from and saw four figures, _standing_ on the bottom of the ship. Yuki, Mizu, Kisame, and Kakashi all had on breath masks and using their chakra to hold themselves to the wood. Kakashi motioned to take the offense and Mizu formed hand signs.

"_**Water Style: Current Haymaker!**_" He called out in his mind. He punched his left hand with his right fist, drew it back and thrust it forward. It created a shockwave that traveled through the water and impacted on the chest of one of the men nearest to the rudder, knocking him unconscious.

Mizu drew back his fist again and let more fly, back-to-back. One man managed to pull the rifle of his back and bring it up for a shot before he took one to the head and knocked it out of his hands. Kakashi signed to Yuki to remove the scrolls and grab the weapons when it was over. He took off all the scrolls and kept two as well as the rifle that was dropped and brought them up on deck.

Yuki presented the items to Shobo and he had them examined by Garasu. Garasu held up the scroll and pointed to the seal. "After careful inspection I can say that there isn't anything deadly sealed inside. But there is something that can be a hindrance to the ship." He had Tsuchi hold the scroll open and Mizu unseal it, revealing a large steel ball and chain with four sturdy hooks on the other end.

"It would appear Baba was right. They planned on slowing us down using about a dozen of these. They had a large number of the rifles that Yuki brought up; I'll take a thorough look at them when we are not under attack. This suggests that the next part of their plan was to take us by surprise by using both the scrolls and their weapons at the proper time as to shock us and catch us off guard."

(Fifty minutes ago)

"From what Baba says first they'll likely try to subdue us as easily as they would any other criminal, but they won't be so lucky. Next, they will come at us from below; using chained weights in order to hold it and at the same time, they expect it to shake us up some so it will take the toll out of chaining us up. When we've dealt with that, the second phase will commence: retaliation." Garasu explained.

"This phase will be different to the one before since we were anticipating the island's first protocol of security. We know that by then, the island will have seen us as a threat, and whether it's by the lord's decree or the warden's orders, a second wave of enemies will come for us. Depending on if it's the former or the latter, we will have to proceed differently. But we won't engage in this part, only observe." He said.

Shikamaru approached Garasu and tapped him on the shoulder. "If I may, I have a few ideas that should help with that. But we're going to need to do a bit of salvaging if we want to increase our odds of success when we get into the battle." Garasu studied the boy intently and carefully. _Hm, this should be good._ "Alright kid, let's hear it."

(Present time)

After having dealt with the teams from the boats and below the ship, they were all tied up and thrown back on the boats they came on. The men rowing the boats were forced to return the docks to treat their comrades. Garasu spoke with Shikamaru up in the crow's nest, going over the details of what happened. Garasu leapt down to converse with Shobo, "As expected, the enemy is retreating to tend to their wounded. I suggest using this to plan our next move before they can assemble a counter-strike." He advised.

Ruckus off in the distance signaling men coming to arms confirmed Garasu's thoughts. Shobo shouted for Hoshi and Tsuki, "Is that toy of yours functioning yet?" "Which one, do you mean the more recent one or the big one below?" Hoshi asked. "We won't get the big one ready in time. Bring up the other ones." He replied.

Both girls went below deck and came back up with two crates. The ninja were curious to see what was in the box and became satisfied when Shobo ripped of the lid and pulled out a shiny steel gun with a large four-pronged muzzle and a bronze blade like that of a katana attached to the bottom of the barrel.

"Not every one of my crew can use chakra like you ninja, so I had the wiz kids here make these for situations like this. Gale pulse guns, finished last week, these are not normal guns: they can either shoot a compressed ball of air at the enemy at a velocity strong enough to knock out even the sturdiest of men, without killing them or a large gust of wind able to throw multiple people off their feet. While they don't need someone with chakra to use them, they do need chakra to function." Shobo explained displaying the weapon.

He turned it over in his hands to show the side which had a seal on it and a small red switch next to the trigger. "This seal can convert chakra into power the weapon needs to fire. The power is also the ammunition, however there's a flaw in the design: because of the mechanics of the gun, one must be careful of how many times it can be fired because of the charge it holds will gradually deplete over time, although it takes a while."

Hoshi started passing them to her crew members and Garasu cracked open one of the barrels full of pearls from before. Shobo saw this and became both intrigued and a little concerned. "Garasu, you don't think we'll be using those so soon do you?"

Garasu grabbed one and repeated tossed it in the air. "At the moment we don't know the enemies full strength. My two cents for this, expect the unexpected and having extra firepower wouldn't hurt either." He told them and tossed them to everyone. Kakashi caught one and examined it. "We're going to use pearls to fight?" He said skeptically.

Garasu walked up to Kakashi and pointed to the ball. "You may have figured by now that these are not pearls. Fun little toys, these are magnesium flare bombs: ten ounces of magnesium, centered in a light-weight spherical metal frame with six small glass plates on six sides. Simply break the glass, throw it in the water, and watch it shine with light that can actually make water boil and even evaporate a small body of it. We call them boil bombs for that."

"And you're sure they work?" Kakashi said trying to assure himself. Shobo was juggling two with one hand. "We use these all the time or at least when the time calls for it which happens to be quite a lot. We've experimented with them for a number of things, some of which you may not want to know about. For this run I've coated them with a unique solution that makes them look and feel like pearls. They won't pass a master jeweler's eye as real, but it won't be much of a problem."

Multiple splashing caught Shikamaru's attention. "Speaking of problems, we've got quite a few of them coming our way." He leapt up to the crow's nest to get a better view of what was happening. From the land there were numerous men ready to battle lining the shores and docks. In the water there were men-sized shadows surrounding the boat. "Oh perfect, it looks like we get to see your toys in action." Shikamaru said to himself.

(Forty-five minutes ago)

"Once we've hit the second phase, we'll most likely have a difficult time on our hands. Even with the information Baba has given us, we still don't have a clear outlook of their capabilities. That said being, we need to be careful on how we go about dealing with their forces once they have revealed them." Garasu said.

Shobo explained the next action. "When the second phase begins we can check out the enemy's strength of fortitude and numbers. The only thing we can account for is that we don't know what to account for. So my plan will invoke the third phase: blitzkrieg. We're going to blow right through their line of defense."

Everyone was dumbstruck at the sea-faring ginger's proclamation. "You're just going to rush them and hope for the best?" Kakashi asked. _Looks like I was right, this guy's got more than just a screw loose._ He thought.

Shobo shrugged with a smile on his face. "Why not do it? This place has a reputation for being able to hold any and all criminals inside the prison's walls, as well as holding it against any assault. It would be insane to try something like that, and that's exactly why it's perfect for this run. They'll never expect it."

(Present time)

Shobo rushed to the helm and began to bark orders. "Kisame, Mizu, Kakashi, you know what to do. Baba, get that pet of yours ready and keep those kids safe. Itachi, you and the ninja will be on defense. Everyone else, grab a gun and listen to Kaze. Make sure you have them switch to the gust setting. We're going for speed here. Shikamaru, Hinata, remain at your posts and give us a daily report. What's the current status?"

Shikamaru's eyes did a full three-sixty of the area and he didn't like what he saw. "Large numbers are gathering on the shore and I can see more coming. Hinata, what can you see?" He shouted down towards the bow. Hinata had her Byakugan active and scanned the surrounding waters. "We have more incoming from below. They aren't approaching the ship but it's the same on the land."

Kisame asked Mizu what was going on, "Don't worry about that, and just follow my lead. When you feel the ship begin to accelerate, begin the justu." He said and jumped into the water. The three of them swam down and attached themselves to the butt of the ship, Mizu behind the rudder and Kakashi and Kisame beside him. While under, they got a good look at the numbers. _Ten…fifteen…twenty…and more coming, if we have to fight all them we won't get off easy._ Kisame thought.

(On deck)

Kaze held the gun in his hands at the sail. "Alright everyone, aim for the sails. We're blowing past these guys at full speed." He pulled the trigger and an X-shaped form of wind shot out. The wind gust hit the sail, ruffled and expanded it, giving speed to the ship. The others followed suit and fired off round after round.

The ship slowly started to move faster, as it did Hinata watched the shores. Many of the men ready for battle were keeping a steady pace with the ship even as the speed increased, but they kept at a distance. _They're not attacking, they're just following us. Something doesn't seem right._

Shikamaru observed the crew's handiwork. _Nice, use the winds from the guns to push the ship to speeds it normally couldn't do in calm weather. And the ones Shobo sent below…_

(In the water)

Mizu pointed with two fingers to his eyes, and then pointed to himself with his thumb. Watch me. He went through a sequence of hand signs and stuck his hands out. Kakashi and Kisame mirrored the signs perfectly and they all performed it at once. The current began to swirl around the three and grew stronger and bigger with every passing second. _**Water Style: Giant Vortex Justu!**_ They all called out in their minds.

(On deck)

An explosion rocked the ship from beneath the water. Shobo nearly stumbled to his knees from the power. When he steadied himself he ran to the back and looked down. A great cyclone of water erupted and surged downstream. Every man behind the ship was taken by the swell while at the same time the power of the justu propelled the ship even faster.

"Ha! It looks like my plan is working." Shobo shouted. Shikamaru was impressed by the sight he beheld. _I see now, using the wind from the guns and using Water-style justu to not only increase speed but to take out the enemy from behind. It's just like he said, we're going to blow right past them all._

This course was easily kept but Hinata joined with Shikamaru and told him her thoughts. "Shikamaru, did you notice the movement?" "I did and I've been wondering the same thing you're thinking." Moments later Shobo was made aware of this and he too, knew this. "They've been following us since we threw their friends back like small fry. Something smells funny here; they haven't moved to attack us, even after we pulled that stunt under the boat." He said with a hand rubbing his chin in thought.

He didn't have much time left to think about it because the ship left the river and entered the lake. "Yuki, get to our boys in the water and get them up here. Tell them we've entered the lake and are coming up on the prison," Shobo's face turned to stone and uttered the next words with every ounce of seriousness. "In the next moment, things are going to get ugly."…or rather, that's what should have happened.

Nothing happened. Both Shobo's crew and the ninja were armed and ready to take anything that was thrown at them, ready for the worst after everything they heard, and nothing happened. Shobo, Kakashi and Garasu were keeping watch for any sign of approach from the bridge. "I don't understand it. Why go through all that, order every man on the island to arms, and not attack?" Shobo muttered.

The ship continued on, closer and closer they ventured to the prison as it came into view. A colossal fortress with a simple design: an immense stone wall stood in front of them with a tower on each side, and the foundation spread on further out of sight. "Hinata." Kakashi commanded and she complied by activating her Byakugan.

With her eyes she saw it all, the structure above the water was a great octagon carved from bedrock with more towers standing where the sides met. All along the top of every wall were thirteen mounted harpoon guns, big enough to easily tear a hole in Shobo's ship and each with three men beside them. On the towers sat four tri-barreled cannons aimed out towards the water, also with three men to a machine. Hinata carefully examined the rock and was amazed to see it showed no cracks or seams, no scars from attempts to escape or beak-in, no signs of wear whatsoever.

"The prison has one-hundred-and-four harpoon guns, thirty-two high-powered cannons and three-hundred-and-thirty-six men on its walls, all of them well armed." Hinata reported with worry in her voice. Baba was completely shocked, "Those are nowhere near the numbers I saw the last time I was here. This must have been part of their renovations; an increase in their defenses would be an obvious choice."

"That isn't all, I've looked over every inch of it and there doesn't seem to be any indication of a way in on the surface and I can't see past the walls either. The sides and the top are visible, but everything past that comes up black." Hinata added. Shobo cocked his head to one side in confusion. "Well, this is quite a setback. How do we get inside then?"

His answer came in the form of a strong tremor that shook through the prison. Two cracks ran parallel lines high up the wall and ended in a point. The stone slab unfolded and split apart down the middle, turning so the slanted ends were rising, and stopped at level with the water. After the rumbling finished the result was seen as a stone docking area.

Silence screamed over the ninja and the pirates after the roar of mass stonework they witnessed. No one uttered a word out of the uneasy feeling they got from looking in the darkness of the massive entrance, as though they felt that something in those shadows should never see the light of day. From the depths of its darkness a deep male voice echoed out addressing the new comers,

"Welcome, my company, to the hell that even gods fear."

**A/N:** Well it's about damn time.

Ok, hope everyone enjoyed this little chapter. I figured that a little planning would go a long way in this. Now mind you I know that someone will think that I left out the last phase of Shobo's plan. There is a reason for this and you will find out later although you can still ask me about it if you want closure. I hope that the real world style weapons mixed in with the chakra style of the Naruto universe is taken a liking to (guns and boil bombs) because there will be more. If you pick out anything you think may be flaws, do not hesitate to talk about it in your review.

I liked the idea to use justu to speed up the ship since most sailing boats operate by wind and man power, though as I look back I do think the vortex justu may be a little overkill but, in my experience, overkill is underrated. :) As for the ending I'm pretty sure I don't have to say who it is, positive that I gave enough info to have it speak for itself.

On the final note, the new justu of the story:

**Water Style: Current Haymaker:**

A justu similar to the Water Bullet technique, but used in the water and with a fist. The user builds up chakra in either fist and lets it fly out, using the current to give it more power and longer distance. Whatever it hits gets the full force of an actual haymaker but at a longer range. Power and distance vary upon chakra-use but if used against the current will lose half of its power and range.

R&R Folks.


	18. Class is in Session: Part V

**A/N:** And here we all are at the finale, the goodness of the parts that you've all been waiting soooo long for (don't blame my being slow; a man needs to work to live).

It is now time for your eyes and curiosity to be sated by my insane antics and intricacy in the newest chapter.

Class is in Session: Part V

(At the prison dock)

"Welcome, my company, to the hell that even gods fear."

Twenty-plus men came running out of the entrance armed with staffs, lining up on the stone and taking aim. From atop the wall the men had the harpoon guns trained on the ship. Garasu, who was standing near his captain, subtly nudged him in the side and signaled the activity with his eyes. "Captain," He muttered under his breath. Shobo made the slightest nod in return.

The voice echoed from the shadows again, "As you can see you are, at the moment, outnumbered and outgunned. It would be in your best interest to surrender peacefully and allow my men to relieve you of you and your ship's battle attire, and I do mean _everything_."

Shobo looked to his crew and his designated flesh cargo, sighed, and dropped his gun. "Captain…" Garasu whispered. "It's alright. We don't have the firepower on hand to forge on. So why bother to fight our way in when we have our own escort." Shobo whispered back. "But Captain!" Garasu started and was silenced with a look from his superior. "We have seen these troubles before and we know how to deal with them. So for now we go along with it so no blood is shed and we wait."

Garasu stood down and lowered his weapon, sending the rest a signal to do the same. Their weapons were collected, the ship was near strip-searched. Food, weapons and materials were confiscated and the ship was commandeered. The prison guards lead them all off the ship and placed them in three groups: men in one, women in another, and children with the elderly, all lined up to face what was coming.

The sounds of footfalls caught the ears of the guards and they stood at attention. A cloaked figure stepped out of the shadows of the prison entrance. Baba moved the twins behind her as though shield them from the new comer's presence. The figure looked their left and addressed one guard. "Fix them up with their new tattoos."

The guard nodded and stepped aside to let another man come forth holding an odd-looking mechanism, a small flat hexagon the size of a child's hand strapped to his hand. "Before anyone can safely enter these walls, a seal must be branded onto your skin. This seal will nullify the effects brought on by the main security system of the prison which are necessary to keep the…urges of the prisoners in check." The cloaked man explained.

Kakashi stepped forward, calm in front of the guard's protective advance. "Before we let you brand us with anything, its common courtesy to introduce yourself first, is it not?" He said in a challenging tone. A chuckle escaped the hood with no face, "Yes, where are my manners? I am Goturo, the warden of Nine Hells prison. I apologize for not showing my face. You see I have a condition that prevents me from exposing my body to the harsh light of the sun. Now if you would?" The identified Goturo motioned to the hexagon plate.

Against his better judgment and seeing as how they wouldn't get very much farther without it, Kakashi reluctantly agreed. He brandished his arm and winced as the seal was burned on his flesh. "It isn't permanent; the mark will fade over time. After each month we rebrand everybody, but you shouldn't be here for that long." Goturo said. He turned and motioned openly to invite them inside and went in. The rest followed with the assistance of the guards, staying in formation.

Grim. Ominous. The last days of light I will ever see again. These were the thoughts they had entering the prison. The moment everyone was inside more rumbling ensued. Two stone walls behind them acted as makeshift doors and closed off all the light and life of the outside world. An echoing snap of fingers sounded off and two dozen torches along the walls lit-up the room. Goturo removed his hood and breathed deeply, "Ah, that's much better. It wasn't long you know, that I've had this damned problem with the light." He said, turning to face them.

He was balding but he still had long gray hair, spiky near its ends and well-kept. He was pale, his face like that of a skeleton. Over his eyes he had special metallic goggles that had one wide slit for sight. Goturo waved the guards off and clasped his hands together in joy. Kakashi saw that the man's hands and arms were covered as well. Aside from his face, his body showed no skin. "Now, there are two faces I'm happy to see." He said looking at Kisame and Itachi.

The two came up and approached him, both staring at him with stone eyes. Goturo held up his hands in mock surrender, "Easy boys, I'm sorry for all the trouble you gone under for this job. Know that you will be well compensated for it, but…" He stopped and gazed at the others. "I didn't think you would travel with such a large crew."

"You could say that we acquired some help along the way. We were forced to use _that_, which made things more complicated." Kisame said. "And the package…" Goturo questioned. Itachi and Kisame looked at each other, unsure of what to say. From behind a voice cried out, "Hang on just one minute!" Every eye turned to see the outburst come from Sakura.

"Before this goes any further we have to know what your intentions are with Naruto." She shouted and pointed a finger at the two rouge ninja. "They may not care to know but it does concern us. How does someone like you know about Naruto and the burden he carries? Why go so far out of your way to curse him and have him brought all the way out here?"

Goturo saw the headband and was quiet for several minutes. When he did speak he had an off-putting smile that reminded them too much of Baba's wide grin. "I guess there's no other way around it. Very well, I suppose that since you are all here, I should explain myself. Come with me," He snapped his fingers and a large hole opened up in the floor. A metal platform rose up from below. "And I will show you everything."

Everyone began to move but Goturo held a hand up against Shobo and his group. "The deal was made to ninja and you lot are all uninvited guests to this meeting. You and the old woman and children will wait here, where all of you and the ship will be held. There will be no negotiations on this matter." Shobo gave a half-assed shrug and sat cross-legged on the cold ground. "That's fine with us. Our job was to get them here and it's been done. Since I can't leave without my fine vessel, we'll do as we're told."

The ninja boarded the elevator, now constantly on guard. With a jolt it descended into the deeper levels, into the untold havoc that was sure to come. The lights illuminating the vertical corridor flew up one after another, the silence made it fell like an age passed with each light. Shikamaru was the first to break the calm, "Where exactly are you taking us? If memory serves there are nine levels in this place."

Goturo sniggered under his breath. "That's right. It takes us a while to get to and pass through everything and everywhere. To answer your question, we are going to the bottom. It is there that I will explain everything."

The walls around them lifted and opened up to a bleak scene: a vast emptiness, like a black sea of nothing. The young shinobi gawked at the sight below them, at how it seemed to have no end. "Is this the first level?" Lee asked. "We keep quite a large number of criminals here as you are probably well aware of by now. I found that it helps to have more room than you need in cases like this." Goturo answered.

They shot back down into the earth and they went down farther and farther. Three levels down Shikamaru was the first to see a change in the prison's structure. During the venture into its depths no one could see the edge of the darkness until the elevator left as soon as it had come, but now the walls could be seen, if just barely. _Is it just me, or is the space getting smaller as we go deeper?_ He thought.

He made his thoughts known to the rest of the group. Goturo heard this and explained with a tone of boredom. "Yes, although I admit it should be more obvious. The deeper you go down into the water's depths, the more power the pressure puts on the body of virtually any mass. As we continue on there will be less and less space, very much like an inverted pyramid. Even though eighty-five percent of the foundation is naturally made, the rest of it, mainly the last two levels, had to be shaped to accommodate for such pressure. You'll see what I mean soon."

Sure enough, by level seven the walls were hardly thirty yards away from the platform. Finally, they made their stop at ground zero, lights blinking on upon their arrival. The differences in security were to be expected and yet it still took the shinobi by surprise. The walls from the levels above only had metal over stone and were a good distance apart. Down here it wasn't much a room as it was a hallway, the walls were also overlaid with metal but for every foot of cold steel there were seals of numerous kinds.

Goturo walked off the platform and down the hall. "These seals are put here for the best protection we can think of. Most of them are used to reinforce the durability of the walls, the rest are for various defense. It's one of the reasons we don't have any people down here; it hasn't become necessary yet," Goturo kept on until we met a heavy steel door. He pushed it, straining himself as he did. When he got it aside it opened up to yet another large empty room with three doors on each side.

The one on the left was no different to the one they walked through while the remaining two were another story: the right door was like the kind you would see on a giant well-fortified vault, three horizontal metal beams barring the door's access. The last one was a behemoth of a door, bigger than the previous one, made out of black metal but not black like iron. No, the black wasn't natural, it looked more like…soot perhaps? Four powerful beams held the door closed at their corners and more than a dozen of them along every edge. A rectangular hole at eye level allowed people to glimpse inside and see what horrors lie within.

"The room on the left is my personal quarters; everything as far as paperwork goes I do there. The one to the right is the prison cache, our collection of miscellaneous items we've taken from our captures are kept inside there. And behind this door," Goturo waved over at the obsidian gate. "…is our most prized possession. We here call it the Hell Gate, home only to one single entity. It took us a long time to find and capture this one, lost more than half of my men trying to just lay a hand on 'em. Yup, this one is something special, possibly the most dangerous individual alive. Go on, take a look and see for yourselves."

Kakashi was curious to see this person that Goturo boasted about. He peeked inside through the viewing hole and gasped at what his eyes beheld. It was a man hanging from multiple chains binding the wholes of his arms, seals engraved onto their links. His head was encased in a dense metallic mask leaving the lower part of his face exposed. Everything below his torso was covered in more of the black metal, warped and spiraled around his body. Other than what could be seen of his face, only his chest was exposed.

Kakashi stepped away from the door and looked at Goturo with disbelief in his eye. "Who is this person that you have to create such a cell?" "Ah, impressive isn't it? The seals you saw on the chains are meant for chakra, one type of seal for draining it and another type to help restore it. It's a delicate balancing act though; if too much is drained, they die. Conversely if too little of it is taken, than given time they can regain their full strength. There are others as well, but I see no point in revealing all of my secrets.

"For whom he is, he has no name. All prisoners who enter here have no names. They have no identities, no lives. All that they are becomes my personal property, however unusual it may be." Goturo shook his head and shrugged. "It may sound harsh, but they _are_ here for a reason."

"What about necessities like food and water?" Kakashi continued the questions. "Although this area needs no guards, I send some down here every four hours during the day to take care of such things. You wouldn't have seen it, but there's even a bathroom in there as well. Don't get me started on the specifics of that." Goturo replied.

Kakashi folded his arms over his chest. "Then why don't we go into something else? You said when we got here you would explain yourself. For example, how is it you know about Naruto? What he has is considered a taboo in our village." He demanded. "I did, didn't I?" Goturo confessed, rubbing his chin. "Have you heard the phrase, "knowledge is power"? Well here, it is power. Information becomes your currency, your lifeline. Sometimes it can even help one's life here behind bars." He pointed to his office and motioned for the others to follow.

He stepped inside and they saw that it was bigger than they expected. There were paper piles in abundance around the room. In the middle of the mess sat a desk under more stacks of paper. Goturo gestured to the piles. "Information: requests of services, daily reports, funding of the prison. All of it is accumulated here and run by me with a fine-tooth comb. About two months ago, my ear caught word of the creatures known as tailed-beasts from one of our new guests. At first I thought nothing of it; most people in some form of military know about them and those demons didn't belong to this land. They have nothing to do with this place.

"Not long after that I heard that the Akatsuki have been collecting these powerful beasts for their own agenda and that they have claimed most of them as their own. Now I'm not familiar with who has what when it comes to these creatures only that the last two have yet to be obtained by this group. So I did some research and I came across something that shed a little light: the destruction of the Hidden Leaf Village. That is where I found out about your friend and his inner demon." Goturo told the shinobi.

Shikamaru stepped up next, "We can buy that, but that doesn't explain why you want him brought here." Goturo spun around with a finger pointed at the boy and countered, "Can you wait enough to allow me to enlighten you or would you like the easy answer where I tell you why and I still have to explain?"

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. A voice on the other side confirmed it was a guard. "Sir, I've come with a report. Top-priority, as you instructed." It said. Goturo stopped and opened the door. A patrolman with an envelope in hand presented himself. He handed it to the warden and returned to his post. Goturo opened the package and removed papers that were inside. His eyes poured over their contents and he laughed with zest in his voice.

"Before I relieve you and your minds of why, allow me to show you something special." He said and crumpled the paper in his hand. He walked out of room and the ninja followed him, now enthralled by his actions. Goturo stood before the Hell Gate, his body like a statue. Then a strange sound began to reverberate throughout the stone and metal. It was quiet at first, barely audible. It grew louder and more distinctive, somehow growing in force and started shaking the walls. _What is that sound? _Kakashi thought. _It sounds like…humming?_

It began to feel like an underwater tremor had hit the foundations. Goturo stuck his arms out, palms raised flat, placed on invisible glass. This suddenly the tremors stopped and as they did, Goturo twisted his hands outward. As he did this gesture, all of the beams locking the door regressed into the wall. Once free of the clamps, the door slid down in the ground. "Come in and meet the Devil." Goturo announced and entered the cell.

He came up to the man in chains and lightly struck the prisoner's head with a fist. The chains clinked together as the man raised his head. "Is that you, Goturo? It has to be, you're the only one who visits my lonely prison cell." He said. His voice was deep and smoky and was hoarse, like he had been talking for hours before. "The helmet he's wearing blocks out all sound, so this is how I get his attention. I communicate through Morse code and he answers normally. The metal that it's made from also has a special property that cannot be penetrated by any visual justu, including the fabled Byakugan of the Hidden Leaf, like using lead against x-ray vision." Goturo clarified while he tapped on the mask.

_Well, that explains why Hinata couldn't see inside before we got here. He's practically made this one deaf and blind to the outside world._ Kakashi thought as he observed the prisoner. Since he first laid eyes on him and the warden started talking to the man, Kakashi saw the prisoner sniffing the air, smelling for something.

"So, what secrets of life would you like to talk about today? Shall it be the folly of youth or the sage wisdom of the elderly? Something more abstract perhaps? You decide this time, this place be damned if I have nothing but time on my iron-clad hands." The man in chains simpered.

Goturo began the discussion using Morse code. While he did Sakura leaned in and whispered to Kakashi, "Kakashi-sensei, can you accurately interpret what he's saying?" He bobbed his head slightly. The warden finished, and the man in chains tilted his head. "That's an odd topic. What's on your mind today?" He said thoughtfully. Sakura glanced at Kakashi for a translation. "Goturo is asking him what he thinks about insanity." Kakashi answered.

A confused look passed over Sakura's face. "What does he mean by that?" "I'm not sure. Let's wait and see where this goes." Kakashi said. Goturo tapped out more words, Kakashi would translate as the exchange went on and the man in chains would respond accordingly: tapping, "What do you think is the difference between insanity and enlightenment?" Man in chains' response, "I think that enlightenment is something one seeks off the beaten path for themselves while insanity can be seen as Man's desires for something they cannot claim."

Goturo put a hand over his mouth in silent mock laughter and went on tapping, "Oh, is that so? Give us an example." The prisoner didn't answer right away. Instead he took a long whiff of the air and grinned. "My word, do we have company?" Silence followed and the prisoner laughed. "We do! It isn't that hard to tell because you're the only one who ever comes down here, but when I smelled new scents I thought, maybe it's just some guards. But the smells, they're so many different smells, I can smell flowers and the sweat of hard work and…" He paused to inhale again. "My, my, there's something that shouldn't be there. Please, won't you humor me as to who's joining us today?"

Goturo thought nothing of it and replied, "They are Leaf shinobi sent here on a mission." This answer made the man in chains roar in laughter. "Ninja?! You want me to give an example of insanity? You couldn't have brought me a better one. My own opinion of course, but I think these particular kinds of people are the most insane." Goturo raised a brow at the comment and Sakura fumed at his words. "How are we crazy? Ask him that." She said in anger. The warden gently waved her off and proceeded with her request. "Please explain how they are such."

The prisoner leaned forward as far as he could. "Let's think about it this way: if you were to ask everyone living now why they wanted to be a shinobi in the first place, most of their answers will be somewhere along the lines of, "I want to protect my home," or "I want to become stronger," or my favorite "I want to work on creating a utopia where everyone can live happily and in peace." It's these idealists who have such goals that give them peace of mind and the strength and courage they need to continue on."

"What's wrong with having goals?" "Nothing is right or wrong when having a goal. But when one does have a goal rarely do they ever think about what the risks might be to reach it, or what they will do once they have, such as my favorite one, seeking to create a utopia." Goturo stopped to gather his thoughts and then asked, "Why is making the world into a utopia deemed insane?"

"Very well," The man in chains took a deep breath. "Imagine that there exists such a place, a paradise on earth, where everything is in abundance, where there is no war, and everyone is happy. An ecosystem that fits in perfectly to suit the needs of the people and vise-versa, where there are no quarrels or talk of warfare. Simply put, it is the life of dreams. Then enters the chaos factor, an incident of someone or something that makes its place in the utopia, whether brewed inside or of a foreign corruption, and then let time and cause-and-effect take over.

"There must always be a cause to bring an effect; it could be anything that disrupts the delicate balance. A man who sought to become something greater than what he is or a sudden discovery of something long-lost or valuable is found in great numbers. People begin to crave these things and as time passes, word gets out. Small things at first: prices will increase, conflicts raise up into sight. Then escalation ensures the mayhem: riots of shortages out of fear of an oncoming storm, invasion of territories, and then soon, all-out war.

"People are forced to take up arms and fight for their lives, kill-or-be-killed to survive. Blood begins to be shed, then flows, and then pools until you could fill the ocean with it. The body count grows until it becomes a mountain of rotting flesh, bone, and corpses. The land becomes plagued with the stain of death and the scars of war run deep. The amount of lives will be vast, far into the hundreds, the thousands, all because a flea tipped the scales.

"Then, when all but a handful of people are left and there is no more reason to fight because they have laid waste to all that was treasured, do they finally look at the horrors they have committed. Under the guidance of a prodigy who pursues change, they try to rebuild what they have lost and make it better. It takes months, years, even decades to finish this task with a small chance of succeeding. One day they manage to realize the prodigy's dream, only to go through the cycle again.

"It's the most repetitive and most foolish ideal humanity has and they've made it three times! The way it's going now, it won't be long before the next war comes and cleanses the land of Man's insanity once again. The chaos factor is inevitable." The man in chains yawned. No one said a word for a while; so long in fact that the man in chains began wondering if his company had left him in his peace.

"I know no one wants to hear it coming from me, but in an odd way he does make a good point." Goturo said. "But enough of that, time to get back to business." He turned and gazed over the shinobi one by one. "Back to the topic of the boy, where is Naruto Uzumaki? I was assured that he would be here with you lot." Kisame sighed and Itachi approached the warden and told him everything that happened.

A grim shadow covered Goturo's face, "I see…you lost him just after that happened and you've been following his destructive wake up to the point where you think he may be here…" He looked Itachi in the eyes and heaved a sigh. "That's a shame, but if you don't have the package you don't get paid." "Fortunately that won't be a problem." Itachi countered, vanishing from sight. Startled, Goturo looked around for two seconds before Itachi delivered a sharp blow to the back of his head, knocking him unconscious.

The Leaf ninja readied themselves for attack and Kisame put their minds at ease. "Now, now, don't be hasty. We're not going to do anything to him. We'll just go back out and find the boy and this is just to buy extra time. To be honest, I've wanted to do that to the old bastard myself. Perfect security my ass." He admitted. This calmed the others down, allowing them to think. Kakashi checked the outside and saw it was clear. "Alright, no one heard or saw what happened so that gives us an advantage, I say we use it to look for Naruto. I've got a plan to help the search go a little faster since we don't even know if he's here or not."

"That won't be necessary." A small voice came out of the darkness of the cell. They looked down at the fallen warden thinking he was awake, and then over at the prisoner. _He can't hear or see us, so who?_ Kakashi thought and his thoughts were answered. "Down here." Everybody looked to the ground to see a surprising sight. It was Mata in his small cat form, "No need to explain, I heard most of it." The demon cat got odd looks from the ninja. "What? The island has cats here too you know, you think anyone's going to mind if a stray wonders by every now and then?" He said sarcastically.

Mata dashed for Sakura and jumped up on her shoulders. "You didn't climb all the way down here did you?" She asked and scratched his ears. "When you all went inside Baba ordered me to find another means to follow you and see what was going on. I did a bit of hunting and my efforts were rewarded. I found a bunch of holes in the ground out by the guard towers and found out they lead down here, they must be used to get more air down to the lower levels." He said.

"That's beside the point," He leaped off Sakura and onto the chains holding the prisoner. "We need to hurry and free this man." "Are you sure that's a good idea? He's down here for a reason…" Ino pointed out. "That's what Goturo wants you to think, the truth is this man is not who Goturo has lead you to believe. I overheard bits and pieces from the guards up top and, ah curse it, it'll be easier if you have _him _tell you what happened before the warden wakes up." Mata said angrily swatting the mask.

"Alright already, but we're only taking the mask off." Sakura told him. Mata inspected the hunk of metal covering the man's head. "There's a clasp in the back. Undo that and you should be able to get it off." Sakura looked back to Kakashi and the others and slowly went for the mask. She fiddled with the clasp and with some frustration she pulled it off.

A cascade of black hair flowed down the man's back. He shook his head and took a deep breath, opened his eyes and blinked a few times, eyes like the night looked into emeralds. "Ah finally, I thought I'd never see again." He said. The mask fell and hit the floor with a loud clang. Sakura was shocked when she looked at who it was. "You…look just like…Sasuke."

The Sasuke doppelganger smiled, "Do I now? I haven't had a chance to see what became of the transformation when I was caught." He looked around to see a cat on his left arm. "Mata is that you? My word," His smile grew when he saw Mata glare at him. "You've shrunk." Mata hissed at him in response. He got a better look at the ninja. "So, you're from the Leaf. It's about time you all got here. I do believe a bit of illuminating is in order."

"Who are you and why do you look like Sasuke?" Sakura demanded. "I'll be brief seeing as we don't have much time. Before I got captured I changed my appearance and I used a memory as an inspiration. Is the sun shining outside?" "Last time we checked it was, but why does that matter?" Sakura asked. He looked relieved, and sad. "That's good, means time's almost up. I'd like to apologize in advance for what you're about to see. Especially now…"

As the words left his lips his body began emitting steam. Sakura screamed and fell on her back, scurrying to make distance, her eyes never left the scene happening. His physical features shifted, his body writhed with such force even the chains binding him were straining to keep him in check. His hair receded and became lighter in color. A mixture of a roar and a scream escaped his throat and then he was still, the only sounds left were him panting.

All eyes were on the unmoving form questioning what the hell they just saw as the steam cleared. The black hair had changed to bright yellow and the voice was different, yet familiar. "Kakashi is that…" Shikamaru muttered. "I think it is." Kakashi answered. Sakura was silent. She got to her feet and walked little by little, too stunned to speak. When she was close enough she lifted his head by his chin and got a good look of his face.

"Naruto." She breathed. A worn out Naruto chuckled, "If you're going to hit me, can you hurry up and do it so we can get a move on?" He joked. Tears of joy fell from Sakura's eyes and she hugged him tightly. Sounds of reassured sighs and whoops came from the rest of the group. "I don't believe it! We were hoping you would be somewhere on the island but," She let him go and held his face. "How did this happen?" She asked.

"I'll tell you everything, once we get the hell out of here and I've had myself a hot and steaming bowl of ramen." Naruto said. "Right, let's-" She started to say and then she screamed in pain and fell to the ground. "Sakura!" Naruto yelled and saw what was happening. Electrical jolts entangled her body and restricted her movements, and not just her. Everyone was on the floor, forced into paralysis. "Sakura, what's going on? What's happening to you?" He screamed and fought to free himself.

"That would be me." Goturo was standing, holding something wrapped in cloth. "I branded them with a special seal of my design. It not only helps protect them from the effects of the prison's defenses, it also allows me to forcefully halt their movements entirely, in case they get too rowdy." He started removing the cover on the item, slowly as if to tease Naruto with anxiety and fear.

"So you are Naruto. I would have never expected it, that a child did all that damage, caused all that chaos. Because of you now I have to replace over half of the island patrolmen, several of my personal guards, not to mention the pain you've caused my pet. I think that a little compensation is in order." He lifted the last of the cloth away and let it fall to the floor. A long and brilliantly glowing golden broadsword with a white tang baring two seals rested in his hand.

Naruto stared knowingly at the blade the warden carried. _That must be the sword Enra and Yunika were talking about!_ Goturo looked down at the blade, then to Naruto, and then to the blade again. "You know of this weapon do you? If you do then you have nothing to fear. When used properly and in the right hands it is a weapon that could change the world. But," He crowed expertly twirling it around in one hand. "For now I'll settle for you and your friends."

"What are you going to do to them?" Naruto asked in his struggles. Goturo handled the sword with both hands, tightening his grip. "For now, I haven't yet decided. But you should be more concerned to what's going to happen to you." He raised the weapon high and Naruto's thrashing increased. ""I'll warn you, this is the first time I'll have used this sword's power on a person so you don't stop moving around so much I might miss and kill you." Naruto froze at the words "kill you". "See, that's much better. So relax, if all goes well not only will you live, you will be free of that "burden" you've been carrying."

"_Damn it all, I still can't out of these things. Enra, Yunika, can't you two do anything?!"_ He thought. Inside the Kyuubi's cage Yunika and Enra were panting from exhaustion. "Not after what we did earlier. Yunika is too weak from dealing with that thing outside and I used up the last of what I had trying to keep up that justu. We can't do anything to stop him!"

"Let's get things started!" And Goturo brought it down. Naruto watched it fall towards him and he closed his eyes. In that moment, before the blade connected, he thought he heard something, someone calling out to him. Then the moment passed and a scream came, the sounds of blood splashed the ground, then all was silent.

**A/N:** Evil cliffhanger…don't you just hate me? :)

Well, hope you have fun figuring out what comes next. R&R.


	19. Blessing or Curse

**A/N: **And we are back with another thrilling chapter of Demon Love. I now you're all dying to find out what happened to our favorite blonde and his ninja pals, I know someone, somewhere reading that chapter was screaming in their minds, _"What the hell?! You killed him off!"_ and you would be right to think that you mentally unstable nut, seeing how it ended. But now we can get on to the fun of it all, what happens next.

Blessing or Curse

(Time unknown, Hell Gate, with Mata)

Everything was quiet like the cemeteries at night. Mata didn't know how much time had passed since…that. He moved from his hiding place and ran for Naruto's cell. He found the door was still open and this perplexed him. Taking caution, he stepped inside and saw that it was vacant of the bodies of the Leaf ninja and shuddered at the thought of what must be happening to them at this moment if they are alive. "I guess it's a good thing I ran when I did, otherwise I'd be a part of that mess too."

Mata sat on his hind legs and looked around the room. The floor had been busted up and broken apart, many pieces scattered the ground, some of the stonework looked as though it was pulled halfway out of the ground. Some chains could be found lying amongst the rubble and where their links connected to the wall there was a network of cracks made by something ripping them off with monstrous power.

Mata was a little hesitant to look directly at what remained of the boy for some reason. He eyed the floor before the boy and he saw it stained with Naruto's blood. "Execution, talk about a harsh way to die." When he finally managed the nerve to look he saw where the origin of the blood came from…and he thought something was wrong. He confirmed his suspicions when he jumped on Naruto's shoulders and sniffed him. His eyes narrowed in thought as he looked back on what he saw.

(Some time ago)

When the man in chains started giving off steam, Mata leaped off the metal links and hid in the shadows beyond the cell entrance, peeked his head out to watch the events unfold with eyes made perfect for the dark. When Goturo paralyzed the shinobi and brought the sword out he closed his eyes as the blade dropped. He heard the sound of metal being sung through the air which was cut short by the boy screaming. His voice echoed and hung in the cell and Mata opened one pupil to see he had stopped fighting.

Goturo lowered the sword and Mata saw blood drip off its edge and fall to the ground. The demon cat heard the old man sigh in distain. He looked at the pink-haired girl lying near the blond, unconscious from the pain brought on by the seal. "It seems you were fortunate enough not to be here to see this. One must be cruel to be kind I suppose."

He turned his attention back to Naruto. "The fool, I warned him not to struggle otherwise I might miss. Well, let us see if we can still get something out of this mess." Mata, though silently mourning the boy for his companions, was curious about what Goturo did next. Although his eyes could see well in the dark he only saw Goturo's back and he had his eyes shut when the warden cut Naruto, so when Goturo brought up the sword again and angled it oddly Mata had to get closer to see what the man was attempting.

While Goturo held the blade in one hand and rummaging for something in his cloak with the other, Mata's eyes scoured the boy's body for signs of where he was cut: a long diagonal slash starting at his right shoulder and ending past his naval. "Ah-ha, there you are." He pulled out, what Mata thought looked like a little glass orb, roughly the same size as the pirate's boil bombs. He saw it pulsate with a faint light like a fragile heart in Goturo's hands. "It's time to set things right." Mata heard the warden say cryptically.

Before he could do anything Mata heard the light sounds of metal clinking against metal. Naruto's body twitched with life still in it. Goturo saw this and smiled for his fortunes. "Well the Gods have blessed me, you've still got some life in you, huh boy?" He grabbed Naruto's chin and yanked his head up to eye level. From the shadows Mata got an unnerving vibe off of Naruto. He could feel something was horribly wrong.

Out of nowhere, an enormous power erupted and shook the walls and the air had begun to grow heavy with a dark presence. Mata hissed at whatever the presence was and started running away. He got to the edge of the cell when he heard Goturo shriek. Mata twisted his head to see why the old man screamed; he was backing away from Naruto and when he was far enough Mata gasped at what he saw.

Naruto had started changing again, but he was different to what Mata saw before. His hair grew long but it was pure white instead of black. His canines elongated into fangs and his hands like claws. His ears developed points and the whisker marks vanished completely. On his forehead a purple glowing mark of eye turned on its side appeared and Naruto opened his eyes. His eyes frightened the demon cat most of all, they weren't black like he found him or his normal blue, the pupils were narrowed to slits and they were an unnatural color of amethyst. He was awake and he was angry.

Mata watched and felt as the presence grew so strong it broke the floor. Naruto pulled against his bounds and the rattling chains groaned in protest, even managing to break two lengths into pieces. "What is this power?" Goturo said looking down at the broken links unbelievably. "No human can get through these, it's impossible." Another one was ripped off proving him wrong thrice. He growled in frustration and ran through some hand signs. "Human or not, you're not getting out of this cell without my permission!" He slammed a hand against the ground and called, "**Ninja Art: Eternal Confinement!**"

The seals on the walls and chains lit up with power. What metal links remained intact sunk into the wall pulling the feral Naruto with them, giving him less room to move. Steel and stone sprung from the walls and coiled down the chains like snakes, enforcing them and wrapping around Naruto to better hold him. Mata kept on edge when he saw the tendrils appeared. They moved on through the insides of the walls, crawling through them, giving the appearance that the walls were alive.

His eyes were glued to the spectacle before him, so much so he leaped back when they sprouted again and reached for him and ran away. The last thing he saw when he looked back was Goturo lunging at Naruto sword in hand while the boy-turned-monster bellowed with rage as the stone and metallic snakes enclosed over his writhing form.

(Present time)

_Exactly what are you, Naruto Uzumaki?_ He thought seeing the boy in a new light. The demon cat poked and prodded at Naruto's head, eventually giving him a good swipe when the poking had no effect. This resulted in Naruto waking up and crying out in pain. "What the hell are you hitting me for?!" He shouted which earned him another swat to the head. He started again and Mata silenced him by way of covering his mouth with his tail. "I thought as much, you don't smell like the dead. If you aren't quiet someone will hear you and tell the warden." Mata said.

Mata removed his tail and Naruto blinked. "Wait, I'm alive?" Mata gave him a puzzled look, "You mean you don't recall?" He said. Naruto looked at him now matching look for look. "Recall what? I remember everything up to Goturo cutting me and then nothing. I figured I was dead." He said and shuddered. _That doesn't make any sense, not after what I saw._ Mata thought.

The blond asked softly, "Is the coast clear?" Mata answered with a nod and Naruto started coughing. He coughed harder and harder until black smoke came pouring out of his mouth. It accumulated and took on the form of a man, weak and bleeding. Enra had multiple wounds on his body and was bleeding profusely from one on his chest similar to the one Goturo gave Naruto. His robe was in tatters and his hair was mess. It fell over his face, damp with sweat and blood.

Mata's face showed no surprise at the sight of the smoke demon and merely asked, "What hell hole did you crawl out of?" Enra limped over and sat beside Naruto to rest. "It's so good to see you too, you sorry excuse for a feline." He retorted. Mata rolled his eyes at the comment, "Now don't get snarky at me. I'm not the one that did this to you or your friend now I'm I?"

Naruto looked back and forth from Enra to Mata. "You two know each other?" He inquired dully. Mata waved his tail in front of the blonde's face. "That's a tale for another time boy. The right story should be what happened to you two? I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours." He said. A solemn look crept onto Naruto's face. "To tell the truth we're not sure what happened. Everything was fine up to when we got to the lake..." He began to explain.

(When Naruto arrived at the lake)

Enra was fishing for the ayakashi when the line pulled him to his feet. "Get ready youngling. Out ride is about to surface." He said toying with the idea of handing the pole to Naruto again. Naruto became serious and jumped to his feet.

"Alright, let's get this thing started!" He exclaimed and the water before them exploded with a great force as something bag and scaly broke the surface. Naruto was ready to jump on their eely friend when a black colossal claw reached for him through the spray. "Watch out!" Enra yelled and leaped for the boy, taking him out of harm's way.

After a quick tussle on the ground they got a good look at the scaled arm. A huge claw, thick and powerful, almost as big a round as the ayakashi's head retreated back into the water. "That wasn't an ayakashi, they don't have any limbs." Enra said. "Then the hell was that!?" Naruto shouted in shock. "I can't deduce what this creature is just from its forearms. All I know at the moment is we have lost our transport with that thing in the water." Enra stated.

Naruto threw his arms up in the air in irritation. "Great, now how do we get there? Unless you can fly us over without being seen we can't do anything." "Getting there is still a problem but having a tantrum isn't going to help any." Enra scolded. _"Boys, if I may?" _ Yunika's voice interrupted the two's argument. Naruto turned his attention inward to the redheaded vixen. _"Do you have an idea?"_ Naruto asked her in thought. _"I might have."_ She replied in that smug tone Naruto hated._ "You've thought of something that's completely crazy haven't you?" _ He groaned. _"I might have." _She answered.

(Present time)

"Her idea lead us through all kinds of fighting, we even ran into that creature again, something we were hoping wouldn't happen." Naruto finished. Mata understood what Goturo was talking about when he spoke of his men. "When your mask was removed, the pinked-haired one mentioned something about you looking like another person." Mata probed.

Enra coughed and grimaced in pain, "Things got nasty near the end. The thought had come to mind that the warden might know what Naruto looks like so when I grew too injured to fight properly I possessed Naruto and performed a justu to change his form so no one would recognize him when he got captured. As it turns out causing all of that craziness proved helpful and doing so placed us in here." He said waving around the cell.

Curious, Mata asked, "How was getting captured helpful to you?" Naruto chuckled, "See, the original plan fell apart when whatever that thing was attacked us so we improvised. What we really needed was to see where the sword was." Mata shook his head. "Such recklessness, you go through all that, let yourself get apprehended, get beaten to hell when you do, all to find some weapon the warden is hiding?"

"Well, we didn't plan for Enra to get so badly hurt. I figured once we found where it was, he could do his smoky-smoky thing, set me free, and then we can get our stuff, nab the sword and fix my problem." Naruto said and he went on telling Mata what had happened to him. "I see, that would explain some things," Mata said. "But there's one thing I still don't understand. This cursed seal that Itachi put on you…does it affect you in other ways?"

Naruto thought about it. "Other than corrupting Yunika's seal, nothing as far as I know. Why?" Mata told them his experience when Naruto went berserk after Goturo cut him. "A purple mark on my forehead? That's happened before, but at the time we didn't know what was or where it came from. I don't know anything about what was up with my eyes though." Naruto confessed.

Enra was in deep thought while Mata told his story and he snapped his fingers, "I think I might finally have it. Ask Yunika what state the seal is in." "What for?" Naruto asked. "That sword you were talking about, Goturo cut you down with it correct?" The blond nodded. "So where is the wound?" Enra pointed to Naruto's chest.

Naruto looked down to find there was, in fact, no cut. While there was blood on his skin and the floor, there was no other evidence that he was harmed. "I don't get it, I know he cut me. I felt the blade…" Naruto mumbled. "You are not wrong, I saw the wound myself before I left. So you can understand my confusion when I saw it was gone." Mata added. Enra pondered this. "Is it possible that you healed yourself before Mata came back?" He questioned.

Mata did a double-take. "His recuperative skills are that fast?" Naruto shook his head again. "No, for the while I thought I was gone. I can heal from almost any injury but at most it takes a day or two, even for the worst injuries. Unless we've been here for longer than that, someone or something helped with that part."

"That's not the only thing on my mind. The sword had special properties that can help fix the seal. It's possible that the aftermath of what the cat saw could have something to do with that seal." Enra explained. Naruto made an attempt at a shrug and tried his inner demon. _"Yunika, are you awake yet?" _He thought. He received no response for over a minute and tried again. "_Yunika?"_ Silence for five minutes. _"Marco?" _Nothing.

"Enra, I think something's wrong. I'm not getting anything back from her and I can't feel her presence." Naruto said feeling uneasy. Enra made a poor effort at standing up, using the wall for leverage only to fall back on the floor. "Give me a minute…" He said and turning into smoke he ventured down Naruto's gullet.

(Inside Naruto's mindscape)

Enra possessed him and brought the both of them to the Kyuubi's cell. The two materialized near the cage, Naruto was shirtless but luckily still had pants and Enra fell to his knees in exhaustion. "Enra, are you going to be okay?" Naruto bent down and pulled Enra to his feet, arm over Naruto's shoulder. Enra was breathing heavily, "I'll be fine once I've rested up some. Even possession takes some energy, energy I must be careful to spare."

Enra looked over at the cage and his eyes widened in horror. "Naruto, look." "Why? What is…?" Naruto's voice trailed off when he saw what Enra stared at: the inside of the Kyuubi's cage was empty. "She's gone! But how's that possible?" He said astonished. Enra couldn't speak in his stupor, his mind was still trying to make sense of how. Naruto shook him until he snapped out of it.

Enra held a hand to his head, "I'm sorry, it's just that something is clearly wrong here." Naruto rolled his eyes, "Well yeah, I'd say something is very wrong. The most powerful being in the world is gone from her cage and I'm trying to figure out why it is that I'm not surrounded in the destruction and chaos of her being unleashed." He said angrily.

"I know that, but it isn't just that. Think about it for a minute, something that powerful, it would take time to free something like that without killing her or you in the process. Either there is an extremely powerful force out in the world conveniently located near here that has the strength to rip her out or," Enra said pointing to the cage. "Her jail cell may have been altered in some way to ease or hasten her way to freedom."

Naruto and Enra walked over to the steel bars and he laid Enra down. When he did Naruto's hand brushed against the cold metal and he felt an odd tingling sensation. Reacting to this, Naruto placed a hand on the doors of the cage. He could feel a faint pulse of something he couldn't identify. _What is this feeling I'm getting?_

He looked up and saw something glowing purple on the seal on the cage doors. He willed the water on the ground to swirl around him and bring him up to it. Getting a closer look he saw it was the seal itself that was glowing, it was also the source of the sensation he felt earlier. _It's strange, the seal seems to have the same effects as before, but the formula has changed since the last time I saw it. And that's not all…_

Naruto noticed a series of purple spider-like slivers, almost like veins, affecting it from somewhere. The water returned to normal and he ventured a guess as to what the cause might be. He followed the veins and sure enough their origins came from Yunika's seal. Not only were the cracks still there, they seemed to have spread beyond the boundaries of Yunika's seal and infected the main seal that once held her.

"Hey Enra, do you know of any justu that can make one seal affect a different seal?" Naruto yelled over his shoulder. "There aren't any that come to mind. What did you find?" Enra shouted back. "It looks like something happened to Yunika's seal and whatever it was made it alter the one binding her. It's like to two seals are connected somehow. Do you think maybe Goturo used the sword's power to do this?" Naruto asked. "I don't have a clue, but then again I don't know much about this weapon so, maybe."

Naruto soured in his thoughts and returned to Enra. "Do you think you have the strength to try freeing me from those chains?" Naruto said. The demon chuckled in pain and shook his head. "No, I need to rest and save what strength I have for something I can do. I do however have a theory that could be of some help to you." He told him what he had in mind.

"I know it's a gamble but there's only one way to find out if it works." Enra told him with confidence. Naruto left the mindscape and came back to reality. Naruto looked for the demon cat and found him eyeing Naruto's chains, "Hey, Mata was it? Do you think you can break me loose?" "Sorry kid. While you and Smoky the Robe were chatting I've been looking at these links. With the strength of the chains and all the justu on the links, anything short of an earthquake isn't gonna cut it." Mata replied, not bothering to look at him.

Naruto sighed, "I guess there's no other choice." He fought to free himself again. Mata jumped off with a yowl. "What do you think you're doing thrashing around like that? You aren't strong enough to break free." Mata growled at him. Naruto kept at it more and more with no luck, grunting with every action. "I know that…but you said that earlier…I had the strength to pull…these damn things off."

"I know what I said kid, and even if the previous attempt broke some chains loose and weakened your bonds we still don't know where that burst of power came from." Mata said and put a paw to his head. Naruto strained one last time and stop to take a breather. "What did you hope to accomplish with the state you're in?" Mata asked exhaustedly. Naruto took a few more breaths before he spoke, "Enra thinks that if we can, "induce another episode," I can get free and we can get a move on."

Mata scratched his ear with his foot. "How would you go about doing that?" Naruto said nothing as his thoughts turned to what happened before he blacked out. He closed his eyes allowing images to flash by: a bloodthirsty Goturo holding the broadsword up, ready to deliver a fatal blow, a defenseless Sakura, lying on the ground screaming in pain and agony, and a nameless voice crying out, a voice that filled Naruto's heart with a powerful anger.

(Inside Naruto's mindscape)

Enra was resting against the cell doors when he felt a pulse emanating from the chakra seal. The seal glowed intensely and it traveled through the veins. They thickened and bulged as the glow made its way to the main seal. The 4th Hokage's seal where they all merged lit up like small sun, temporarily blinding the smoke demon. He could hear the pulse more loudly and for some odd reason, it reminded him of a heartbeat. _What is this?_

(Out in the real world)

Mata instincts kicked into overdrive as he felt the dark presence return and its source was coming from Naruto. "Kid, what are you doing?" He asked growing more cautious with every second. Through Mata's eyes he saw Naruto's body become enshrouded in an eerie purple aura. The mark returned on his forehead and Naruto opened his eyes and they grew feral, turning from cerulean to amethyst. He clenched his fists and pulled on his bonds with renewed vigor.

_This is just like the first time, _Mata thought and his mind moved to what happened next. _But can he keep himself in this state without losing control?_ The metal groaned again and again with each pull. "Come on damn you, come on!" He growled through gritted teeth. _It's still not enough. Even with the chains weakened like they are they're still too strong. Ah, damn it all!_

In his struggles, he thought heard a woman laughing in the recesses of his mind, _"You know if something like this is too hard for you, you can always stop." _An image of Yunika in her human form giving him that self-satisfied smile he hated with a passion popped into his brain. The thought of him being tormented at her expense filled him with a new kind of rage. "Damn that Yunika, I'll show her." He said and a devilish smile crept up on his face. "Once I've gotten out of here, I'm going to find out what happened to her, so I can find her and smack that smile right off her face!"

His body started transforming again, taking on his Demonic Ascension form. He lunged again, this time the entire wall shook, pulling at the metal plating like it was mere putty against Naruto's newfound strength. Electricity discharged and crackled over his flesh in short bursts and traveled over the length of the chains, reaching their ends and dispersing over the wall. Mata hissed and backed away from several small sparks of lightning that arched over his way. _Lightning!? This didn't happen before. What is the cause of this?_

"You hear me you redheaded bitch!? First I'm gonna tear that bastard Goturo a new hole, a hundred of 'em, a thousand of em' until he tells me where my friends are," Another pull broke a few links and they sung a song as they hit the floor. "And then I'm coming for your hide!" He bellowed and in one last heave he snapped the remaining chains apart. Mata stared wide-eyed at Naruto as he tore off what was left of his caging in his outburst.

Naruto breathed heavily from the endeavor of freeing himself. Mata pawed at the fragmented pieces of iron and looked at Naruto with disbelief. "What in the great dark abyss of Hell was that?" He asked. Naruto inspected his body, glad that he had his pants and boots. He looked down at his hands and watched the lingering sparks of static. The aura and the mark vanished and the color of his eyes returned to normal. "No idea. I just saw Yunika's face and I snapped." He switched to his thoughts. _"Enra, what's it look like on your end? How's the seal holding?"_

"_There was one strange light show going on down here with both of the seals but absolutely no new damage was done to them. Whatever Goturo did, it seems to have halted the decaying effects."_ Enra reported. "Well that's a good thing isn't it? It's over? I'm not going to go boom?" Naruto said hesitantly.

Silence for a few minutes, then, _"Regardless, if that is the case we should be careful; the chakra seal is still damaged from past battles that forced you to use chakra. Anything that you just experienced could be a part of the change. At any rate I vote on getting out of here and seeing if we can find your friends. I say we hold off on speculation until we know more about what the warden did."_ Enra advised.

Naruto shook off the rest of the static and addressed the cat. "Mata, are you going to help us? I mean, can you help us?" Mata bobbed his head and shifted to his original form. Naruto yelled in surprise and Mata laughed. "What's wrong? If you think I look scary you should take a look at yourself. You don't even look human anymore." _Yeah, I've begun to notice myself._ Naruto thought with grief.

"Let's get going. First things first, I need to get my things." Naruto said walking out of the cell. Mata walked in stride beside him. "Well a good place to start your search would be the prison's vault. I overheard about it from the guards. The big door on the left here," He said strolling over to the vault entrance and sat in front of it. "Should have everything you need."

Naruto ran a hand through his hair, forgetting it grew longer he held some of it up to see. It was still white but now it nearly reached his waist. _Wow, I hope this doesn't get in the way._ He took a long look at the door and had an idea. "I know one way of opening it…" He said preparing a justu. Before he had a chance Enra smoked out of Naruto's mouth and went human. "Don't even think about it. Remember what we talked about?" He scolded.

"Ah come on, what's the point in getting new power if I can't use it?" Naruto complained. Enra tsked Naruto, wagging a finger in his face. "Let me handle this. You know, it's more subtle to pick the lock than blow the whole thing off." Enra dissipated and slipped in through any and every crack he could find in the door. Naruto heard gears grinding, metal clinking and clashing, and the sounds of Enra taking his time picking the massive lock. Three satisfying resounding thuds later the bars slid to the side and the door creaked open with Enra walking out of the vault carrying some things in his hands.

"You see? Vast intellect will outmatch lone power every time." Enra was pleased with his handiwork and tossed them to Naruto. "I found your clothing, bag, and your weapons, but seeing as how where stuck at the bottom of a very large incarceration facility, it may be in your best interests to upgrade." Naruto suited up and walked inside, took one look and his jaw practically hit the floor when the lights flickered on.

Shelves, dozens of them reaching to the ceiling, all loaded with every kind of weapon you could think of and then some. Everything from swords and spears to crossbows and shields and some Naruto couldn't recognize. On one shelve Naruto saw a metallic spider skeleton and on another sat a crystal pyramid. Mata sniffed some suspicious items, grimacing at some while avoiding others. Naruto watched this and called Enra over to ask why.

"He's a bakeneko, a demon cat with more than a few tricks. One of them is that he can smell the scents of anyone who's touched those objects and tell us who they belong to, if he knows them. My guess is he's probably looking for things belonging to the group that brought him." Enra assumed. "That's not all," Mata said overhearing their conversation while walking past a bloody looking mace. "I can also tell if the smells are human or not." He said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto said skeptically. "My mistress isn't human so her scent will be unlike yours. There might be some of her things here that can be of use to us." He moved from a set of armor to a box with glyphs etched in it, stopped at a silver scimitar for a minute and walked on. Naruto scratched his head and a light bulb went off. "Enra, how many weapons do you think are in here?" He asked.

Enra did a quick three-sixty, "At first glance, possibly enough to supply an army or two." Naruto crossed his arms and looked up. "You've been around the block for a while. Would you know how to use half of this stuff?" He asked. "Where are you going with this?" Enra said questioning the boy's logic. Naruto dug in his bag for something when he heard Mata shout, "I found something!"

Naruto left the bag alone and the two of them rushed to Mata's position. They found him sitting in a corner next to a big metal box that had an old-fashioned heavy lock and some paper tags on it. "I've got good news and bad news. The good news is I found something of importance to us," He said indicating a nearby shelf with his tail. Naruto walked over and saw another scroll with an iron band. "My mistress gave that same scroll to your friends. Supposedly there's worthwhile info inside but we never could get it open. Take it with you. It could still be of use."

Naruto picked it up and placed it with the rest of his things. "What's the bad news?" He asked. Mata glanced at the box next to him and his voice turned grim. "The bad news is I may have found something of importance to you." Naruto didn't understand why Mata said this so he went to investigate the container.

He found the paper tags had seals written on them which he recognized as a barrier justu being used to keep people out. On the side facing him he saw a viewing slot and looked inside. He couldn't make out much but he could make out a figure on the ground. Seeing this he started hastily tearing off the tags and Enra grabbed him by the arm to stop him.

"Whoa hold it, why are you doing that? Whatever's in there could be dangerous." The demon asked uneasy of the boy's sudden change. Naruto yanked his arm away. "There's someone inside there, surrounded by weapons, locked in a vault. If they are a threat, I'll deal with it." He smashed the lock with his new strength and opened it and blushed when he better saw its contents.

It was a naked young girl, about Naruto's age, lying unconscious on the ground. The instant Naruto saw he turned around to allow the girl some dignity. "Enra, do you think you can find her some clothes?" He said restraining himself from sneaking a peek. Enra was silent, though his face was red from held-back laughter at the boy's attempt of chivalry and he searched for some spare clothing.

He found a short and sleeveless white kimono just the girl's size along with a blue sash to help keep it closed. Enra covered her body with it and tapped Naruto on the shoulder giving him the okay to look. Naruto took a deep breath and turned around, being thankful that she was covered he could now get a better look at her face.

She was pretty without a doubt and from what Naruto _did see_ she had an excellent figure. She had short red hair that curled slightly at the ends near her shoulders and bangs that framed her face perfectly. Naruto noticed there was a beauty mark under the corner of her right eye. Mata nudged her sleeping form with his head trying to stir the girl awake. She rolled her head around some before she opened her eyes. Aureate globes blinked the sleep away and looked up at her saviors.

She sat up in shock and surprise almost losing her cover as she did. "It's alright, you're safe now. That is, as safe as you're going to be inside a prison." Enra told her trying to calm her down. Mata took a whiff of her hair and his face furrowed. "She has a funny scent to her. Not human, not demonic, I don't know what she is." He informed them.

Naruto crouched down and looked at her with sincere eyes. "What's your name?" He asked. She opened her mouth to speak but no sound came out and she tried again. Her hand drifted to her mouth as her eyes widened incredulously at the realization that she couldn't speak. "She must be a mute, or it's possible that someone did this to her." Enra said catching the girl's movements. Mata prowled around the girl staring at her attentively. "What are we going to do with her? Having another person carries its risks." He said. Naruto looked at Enra who put his hands up. "It's your call."

Naruto took a few minutes to think about it. He knew Mata was right, more people meant a bigger risk and if they left her, someone would have to come and bring her food and they would find out she was set free, raising alarms. But at the same time he couldn't leave an innocent girl all by herself. It would leave a bad taste in his mouth if he did. Another light bulb went off in his head and he smiled, remembering the one thing he was good at. "I've got a few ideas about that, but first I need your help with something."

**A/N:** Okay, I've been checking on the traffic and I'm nearing the 50k marker, only thing that really surprises me when I saw the numbers of viewers for the chapters I saw that it was declining until last chapter which got three to four times as many people. Then I found a recent story that had several lemons in it and it had over 100k in the first seven chapters! This tells me two things: people really like their sex scenes and word is clearly not getting out enough on my story.

In my defense most stories usually get good feedback on how it's going via REVIEWS so I can't tell if anyone actually likes it or not. Give me something. Seriously, any criticism is appreciated.

Enough of my bitching, I will be holding off on the story writing for a while. Holding off, not stopping entirely. I need time to work on some other personal writing projects I haven't gotten to for some time now. So, until next time, Read&Review.


	20. Making Preparations

**A/N:** I'M BACK! Oh stop, you're embarrassing me. As I type this, a funny nugget of philosophy comes to mind: who's more insane, the madman who plays god or the people who follow him? Ok enough of the funny, time to shed light on some reviews. For starters Soluke, I will take your words to heart. I haven't bothered to build more on Naruto and Yunika's relationship for the time being for a few specific reasons which I plan to unveil over as we move through the prison. As for the part about Enra, I've got some surprises lined up in that area. :)

SSJ3 Kyuubi Gohan, as I've told to you I will tell to everyone. Seeing as a good majority of the Akatsuki had been dealt with by the end of the Pain arc, I've decided not to use them in the story save for three, two of which have obviously been introduced. Solrac III, though I am disappointed with your decision, as I said before it is yours to make and I respect that. Yes, for most of the story I've used the "cliché" as it is something familiar with the fans, but that does not make it her true self.

Now that we have those out of the way, we can get on the show.

Making Preparations

(The prison vault, with Naruto)

The young redhead was arranging her new outfit with Mata keeping tabs on her from a distance while Naruto and Enra talked. "So what's on your mind boy? You said you needed my help with something?" Enra enquired. Naruto gestured to his body. "Well for starters maybe trying to figure out what's wrong with me now,"

He brought up a hand and ticked off some fingers. "Yunika is missing from her cell and not only is the seal on her cage still there it's been changed, probably by Goturo like you said. Then there's the fact that I look like this without activating the justu. There's also that power I got when I was breaking free and Mata said something about lightning coming off of my body. I need to know what this means and if I can do something about it."

Enra nodded as Naruto pointed these out. "I understand where you're coming from. While we do need to know the pros and cons of your new power, we can't simply speculate or play trial and error, not without something concrete to go on first." He began pacing around and thought. "Let's take a look at what we know. We know that the seal holding the old vixen has been altered and that the one she placed somehow played a factor in its rewriting. This gives rise to the thought that there may be new effects added to your seal due to this."

He stopped and looked at Naruto with quizzical eyes. "Your form on the other hand is a mystery to me. If I recall, this was the form you took on when the two of you merged except for your eyes; they've changed to a livid shade of purple." Naruto reached for his eyes and stopped himself, remembering he had a mirror in his bag and pulled it out. He looked at his reflection and Yunika's beastly eyes came into his head. "Do you think it might have something to do with the seals joining? I mean they both have the same colors right?"

Enra resumed his pacing, "That is a possibility. That power you were emanating from before and the lightning could also be a result. I also wonder if you can still use any of the abilities now like when the two of you were of one mind. But there's something else that disturbs me. If Kyuubi is gone, how is it you can take that form?" Naruto put the mirror back and placed his hands behind his head. "I'm not really sure. Maybe using the justu multiple times left an imprint or something?" "After seeing everything I have seen so far, I'll believe anything at this point." Enra said wearily pinching the bridge of his nose.

Mata joined the two with the girl in tow. Enra warmly greeted her with open arms. "Ah, don't you look lovely." He commented. Naruto saw that she did look good in the kimono and it fit her like a glove. "Her looks aside, we should find out her name is," Naruto said turning his attention back to Enra. "But that might be a problem since she can't talk. Do you think you could do your thing and read her thoughts?" He suggested.

The mute redhead looked from Naruto to Enra and back in confusion. "Not a bad idea but I'd prefer to hold off on that. You heard the cat, whatever she is isn't natural by your standards or mine. Don't ask me why I believe Mata but I know for a fact that his keen sense is never wrong." The smoke demon replied.

Naruto observed her with a troubled stare. She wasn't much shorter than he was and her eyes resembled those of a person who didn't realize their situation. It was like looking at a child who never learned how to fight had just been given a weapon and thrown onto a battlefield. "If she can't speak then we'll just have to use another method of communication. Simple." Enra lowered himself to eye level with the girl and asked her, "You can understand us right? Simply shake your head yes or no."

She nodded and Enra asked, "Can you write?" She gave him a questioning gaze and Enra made writing motions with his hands. She nodded again and Enra reached in robes, pulling out a scroll, an inkwell with a lid tied closed, and a brush. "Write your name on this." He instructed and handed her the items.

Taking them in earnest, the girl opened the scroll and undid the inkwell. After some messy strokes of the brush she handed the scroll back when finished and Enra examined it. _Whatever she is, she knows the human writings._ He thought and read aloud, "'I don't know. I don't know who I am or how I got here.'"

Enra's face scrunched up in puzzlement. "Well aren't you an oddity?" He bemused to himself. "It would seem that she has no recollection of who she is. I can't say for certain if she's lying or not without invading her thoughts and I would prefer avoiding that for the while." Naruto watched Enra's face change from deep thought to something like subtle nostalgia. A ghost of a smile grew on his face and vanished just as quickly. He rolled up the scroll and slipped it back in his robes.

"We still need to call her something. We can't just name her Girl can we?" Naruto said. Enra patted the young girl's head and rubbed it gingerly. "How about naming her Cora, if you are so set on giving her a name?" He proposed. Naruto agreed seeing as it was as good as any other name. The smoke demon pointed a digit at the girl, "And thus you are dubbed Cora. That's what we're going to call you from here on out understand?" Cora pondered it and smiled, pleased with her new title.

"Either way you look at it, she is a conundrum and one we may not have time to solve but I stand by what I said before, it's your call." Enra looked at Naruto, "You need to look for your friends as well as finding out what happened to Yunika and work on getting out of this place, after you fix your more personal dilemma, bringing me back to why you need my help." With that said, all eyes were on Naruto who grinned mischievously.

(Thirty minutes later)

Mata was the first to exit the vault, his eyes scanning for anything that moved. His tail swatted the door and Enra and Naruto both came out with Cora not far behind. Mata flicked his tail in Naruto's direction. "Take heed child, this accursed hell was made to hold more than what we can have to offer in terms of fighting ability. From what I gather, you have a bad tendency to rush in mindlessly."

Naruto glared at the cat but was quiet. Enra tapped the boy's shoulder, "He's mouthy to be sure but he does have a point. We need to be mindful of any traps laid out. Let me see what I can see." He turned to smoke and slipped under the door leading to the hall. Mata moved towards the doorway and sat in front of it.

The door opened from the outside and Enra reappeared scratching his head with one hand and holding a scroll in the other. "Funny thing, I found this lying on the floor just outside the door." Enra held it out to Naruto. He took it and saw it had writing on the back. "'To the Hell Gate Devil, aka Naruto.'"

He opened it up and read its contents: "'I'm writing this as a testament to my unending curiosity, in addition I have also deactivating the security outside where this scroll is placed in the possibility that you might have escaped your cell. By now I bet you are wondering where your friends are if you haven't already and by their mention your thoughts are probably going to the darkest outlook. Rest assured that they are all alive and well, or that is to say, they're breathing.

"'I've decided to make a little game out of this; in the dwellings of this humble prison I have your friends imprisoned, each one of them taken hostage in cells akin to yours. I shall give you a chance to get to them and release them from their incarceration, one at a time. Win the game and you and everyone who came here for you will go free. But first you must learn the rules of the game in order to play.

"'Rule one: I always lie, so anything that I have said or will say could be false. Rule two: each of your friends' cells is rigged to kill its occupant should they try to escape or the cells are breached with excessive force. However, you will be allowed to free one of them, and only one, without any consequence, IF you can free them. Rule three: when you have used your get-out-of-jail-free card, you can have the choice of leaving with your secured quarry or risk it all and gather the rest of your comrades.

"'And now a personal note from yours truly: I wasn't present to witness what you did to my men first hand so when I heard about the bloodbath you started, I was unconvinced. But after what I saw from our encounter, I've taken some consideration as to what I might be dealing with. All things aside, anything goes. So try and escape, go on a rampage, murder some guards, do anything and everything in your power to keep me amused. It's been a long while since I was last entertained. Sincerely yours, Goturo, the Warden of Nine Hells.'"

Mata cracked up laughing after hearing the words, "The ego on this one, although he does sound a bit sadistic doesn't he?" Enra scratched his head again in thought. "Not to point out the obvious, but doesn't it feel like he knew that you would break your bindings and find this? 'Go on a rampage, murder some guards'? First he throws you all the way down here in the centerfold of this stronghold and now this? It defies logic."

Naruto was relieved knowing that the others were alive but his hands were trembling with rage, so much so that he threw the scroll in the direction of his open cell and it struck hard against the wall. "I've had it with this cocky bastard. When I'm done here, I'm gonna find him and wring his neck. Come on, let's get going." He said angrily and stormed through the doorway. _Hmm, seems Yunika's temper has rubbed off on the boy._ Enra thought amused and followed.

Naruto's anger got the better of him for when he stomped down the hall he stepped on a seal that went unnoticed and activated, going off in a bright flash of light. Too late, Naruto looked down and jumped back in one motion and was thrown back with such force he flew past his party and impacted on the wall of his cell, almost embedding him in the metal.

"Naruto! Are you alright?" Enra shouted and ran to his side, joined by Cora. Mata just shook his head and stayed put. Naruto forced his body out of the wall and checked himself for signs of injury. "I'm okay? I didn't feel a thing there." He said amazed. Enra examined Naruto's body with a skillful eye. "Your body's natural defenses may have been strengthened in this form and lucky too, if that were anyone else they would have most of their bones broken. What was that?" He referred to Naruto's impersonation of a human bullet.

Naruto put a hand on his stomach. "I would have thought a flash bomb happened but it felt like something shoved me with a whole lot of strength and I couldn't see what it was because of the light. That bastard," The hand clenched into a fist and he slammed it on the wall. "I forgot about rule one and I'm paying for it with that trap."

Cora gently grabbed the hand Naruto struck the wall with grabbing his attention. Naruto watched as she took his hand and placed it open palm on her forehead, then she moved his pointer finger and poked his own forehead with it. Naruto looked at her weird and she gave him a dirty look and slapped him with the other hand. "Hey, what the-" He snapped and Cora covered his mouth with her free hand, repeating the earlier action with their foreheads.

Naruto looked at Enra who shrugged and did nothing else. The boy leered at him and returned his eyes to Cora. When he calmed down Cora removed her hand and prodded Naruto's brow. "I think I'm starting to get it now. Use my head, is that it?" He said quietly. Cora smiled and patted his head. Naruto stepped out of the cell and took a long and careful look around. "What are you thinking about Naruto?" Enra said from behind.

Naruto looked straight up at the ceiling. He stared up for a little while, still and quiet for the longest time that Enra had seen during his time with the boy. It was for a long while that he was like this until Enra felt a change come from him. "What would you do if you were in my shoes?" He questioned the smoke demon in a neutral tone.

Enra walked up and stared at what Naruto was looking at. "It isn't my place to say. You summoned me remember? I can only give sage advice from my many years of experience." Enra replied. "Alright, then what would you do to turn this problem into an advantage?" Naruto asked. "I believe the real question is what _could you_ do to turn this around?" Enra countered.

Naruto yawned and made for the hallway, Enra shortly behind. Passing the silent Mata, he went through the entrance to the hall and pulled out a scroll from his bag. "How much ink do you have left?" He asked indicating the seals covering the walls. The smoke demon smiled and reached in his robe. "More than you think. Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

Naruto looked back at him, a wolfish grin growing on his face and devious plan forming in his mind. "They've been screwing with us so far, now it's time to screw with them. Just because I can't use all of my chakra doesn't mean I can't go all out. Add your own touches wherever you want to, because if this guy wants a show, then he's going to get one hell of a performance."

(One hour later, eighth level)

Amongst the rattling of cages and two prisoners screaming sat two guards in the grim of the darkness, one sleeping with his back against the wall while the other kept watch and listened to their hollering. A shrill voice screamed out, "May the demons of Man claim your virtues and the Cold Man your souls for the deeds you have done! The heartless ghouls of memories' past shall haunt you and set their claws in you, infecting your thoughts with their madness!"

The guard yawned and pulled off his mask to smoke a cigarette. He took a long drag and sighed through the smoke he breathed. "Sounds like the crazies are starting early tonight. Kind of wish they'd quit ranting for one night at least," He grumbled and took another puff of the cigarette. "What the hell was I thinking, taking on this post?"

The guard closed his eyes and finished the cigarette, throwing it down and snuffing it out with his foot. When he opened his eyes back up, he noticed the air was a bit thicker with smoke than it should have been. He frowned and looked down at the used stub, thinking that a simple cigarette shouldn't make so much. The smog grew thicker, obscuring the guard's vision and forcing him to put his mask back on which he couldn't find.

"Oh that's just great, I take my mask off to smoke and this happens. I can barely see my hands in front of my face." He complained. He heard a voice from inside the cloud, "Then you probably won't see this coming." And it was the last thing the guard heard before a fist flew towards him and struck him hard in the nose, the last thought he had before losing consciousness was, _that's it I'm done smoking_.

The smokescreen disappeared, revealing Naruto standing over the body of the poor man. "That takes care of this one." Enra's voice escaped Naruto's mouth and he turned his black eyes on the other guard. _"What do you want to do with him?" "Leave him be, even if he wakes up we can deal with him later. For now let's bring Mata and Cora up."_ Naruto answered. Black eyes turned back to purple and Naruto went over to the elevator shaft.

He pulled a flare out and lit it, holding it high over his head. He whistled twice down the hole and within moments saw Mata scampering up the sides with Cora tightly hanging on to his back. Mata jumped out of the hole and a frightened Cora leapt off his back, dropping to the ground on all fours. Mata smoothed his fur out and gave Naruto a despiteous look, "I think it's a good idea not to use the elevator since all that machinery would reveal us to the enemy, but I'm currently not a fan of having her ride me like that. If she pulled any harder, she would have yanked out some patches of my fur."

"Don't blame me, that was Enra's idea," Naruto scowled and eyeballed the opening above them. "The next problem is getting up there. I could try making a human ladder out of clones and that should do the trick." Mata rolled his eyes, "Whatever you come up with is fine by me, as long as it doesn't involve that _creature_ getting on my back again." Cora's eyes lit up in anger and she gave Mata her best stink eye and the demonic feline's response was a snarl.

"Quit it you two or I'll leave you both down here so you can better acquaint yourselves until I come get you!" Naruto's eyes burned a violent shade of amethyst as he looked down at them, causing the two to flinch at his gaze. "We don't have time to screw around here, so until we find my friends the both of you will just have to get along." He scolded them.

Cora rose from her position and pat Mata on the head with a mask of feigned cheerfulness and Mata just kept silent and took the gesture, although Naruto did see his ears twitch from her petting him. Naruto looked away to study the ceiling, and to hide the smile slowly growing on his face. _"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that the fox has rubbed off a little on you."_ Enra said.

"_Coming from you I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment or an insult."_ Naruto thought at him. Enra's laugh echoed in Naruto's head and a scream came from one of the nearby cells, causing everyone to jump including the sleeping guard. Upon waking he started speaking gibberish, "Wha's that? Wha's going on 'ere?"

Naruto pointed and said, "Mata, keep him quiet." The beast complied and dashed for the guard, jumping on the poor man and pinned him to the floor. "Twitch human, and you become dinner." He growled and the guard clamped his jaw shut. Naruto was still hearing the screams of lunacy coming from one of the cells, "Ghost-haired demon! There's a ghost-haired demon come for us all! Its eyes are the color of poisoned blood and it has a beast which speaks the language of Men at its command! We shall all perish!"

Another voice, even louder than the screamer, rose up like thunder from a storm. "BE QUIET DANAKI! PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP THEIR LIVES AWAY IN HERE!" The now named Danaki lowered the volume and Naruto was thankful to whoever the second voice was. "Damn, now there's a set of pipes on that guy…" Naruto said rubbing a finger in his ringing ear. "Who's there? You don't sound like one of those guards." The voice spoke again.

Naruto wasn't sure how to answer so he was direct. "I'm not a guard, one's knocked out and the other's been dealt with." Mata licked his lips to show how hungry he was frightening the man even more. "So what are you then? Are you one of those cleaners or a new neighbor?" It asked showing clear interest. "I don't know what a cleaner is here so I guess it's the latter." He said.

Booming laughter filled the space and it freaked Naruto out some. _What's with this guy?_ The laughter died down and shuffling sounds came from a cell farthest from Naruto. "Come over here, I want to see what you look like." Naruto waved Cora to his side and slowly started walking towards the voice as he held the flare out in front. "Over here, that's right. You're almost there." The voice went on and guided Naruto to a door none too different from the one on his old cell. A viewing hole with bars on the door allowed the light from the flare to illuminate the inside.

An old man with a pot belly covered in rags and had short and dirty gray hair that surrounded most of his head and face was sitting on the floor. "A ghost-haired demon, it looks like I'll have to apologize to Danaki later. You see after being in here for so long you tend to see things, and that one wasn't very sane to begin with. You can call me Ikazuchi. So neighbor, could I bother you to tell me where your home is?" He said and laughed at his joke.

"My name is Naruto and I'm from the bottom floor." He said indicating with a thumb pointed down. Ikazuchi stood up and walked over to the hole. "So you're the new guy, heard you gave the warden a hard time outside before they got their hands on you. I don't suppose I could convince you to let me out?" He asked. Naruto stared at Ikazuchi with suspicious eyes, "Why should I do that? Aren't you a criminal?" He questioned. The old man raised an eye brow in amusement, "Aren't you?" He countered.

This stopped Naruto for a few seconds. Technically, Ikazuchi was right. Naruto attacked dozens of people all over the island and caused all kinds of pain because of what Enra and Yunika did, all to get his hands on a sword. He remembered the things they did on the outside and held back a shudder. "Think about it, the way you look now screams convict. But not everyone who gets put behind bars is guilty of a crime." Ikazuchi said.

Naruto scrutinized Ikazuchi with doubt in his mind. "What about you? You look harmless enough, why are you in here?" Ikazuchi laughed again though not as loud as before. "Why am I in here you ask? Those bastards don't need a reason to lock someone like me up in here. I'm a victim of circumstance in all this." He motioned for to come closer and whispered in his ear, "If you ask me, there's something going on that's bigger than you think." He stated.

"_What do you think Enra?" _Naruto thought as he stared at the strange old man on the other side of the metal door. _"Hard to say, so far I think he isn't right in the head. Ask him what his story is."_ Naruto asked why Ikazuchi was here, "I'm a fisherman from the Land of Waves and I came here with my brother to land some big game. We were out at sea for three days when out of nowhere the guards from the prison came and took us both, destroyed our boat and threw us in here. Can you believe it?" Ikazuchi explained with a flair for the theatrics.

"_That doesn't make sense…if his story is true why would the warden put innocents in here with the rest of these crazy people? How is it that no one has noticed this yet?" _Naruto processed this and something clicked. "Say I believe you, why put a fisherman all the way down here, in a cell that has no special attributes?" He said now getting a good look at the inside of the man's room. He saw there were no seals or chains, nothing unusual. It just looked like a normal prison cell.

Ikazuchi applauded the boy for his insight. "That's right, if you can see that then you know that my story has a ring of truth to it. So why not let me out of here?" He pleaded the boy, putting hands together and everything. Naruto gave him a smile but it wasn't kind, "Sorry old man, but even if we did let you out what would be the next part of your plan? If you _are _just a fisherman you won't be able to get out of here all by yourself. No, I think the best plan of action is to keep you in here until we clear out a path for ourselves."

The old man groaned in light disappointment but he smiled at Naruto. "Ah you're right. I will be safer in here anyhow. So, how about a deal? I'll give you something that will help you out on your way and you promise to get me and my brother out of here when your business is done. Does that sound fair?" He extended his hand between the bars. Naruto and Enra both thought about his offer and decided to accept it, taking Ikazuchi's hand firmly. "You have my word. Now what can you give that will be helpful?"

Ikazuchi raised two fingers and counted them off. "One is information. I heard word from the guards that some people had come to get someone at the deepest part of the prison, but they were captured and dealt with. After you told me where you were from I put two and two together and now that you're out I bet my youth that you want to find those people huh?" Naruto nodded growing ever hopeful now that he might have a place to start.

"Well I heard that most of 'em were scattered about in this place and that rotten man Goturo had some kind of game in store for when you got out. It seems like the people working here need to learn to shut their mouths," He tittered a bit before continuing. "Now there are no new people on this floor, in fact I do believe that the only ones left are I and Danaki, whom you've had the discomfort of hearing. But they most definitely are above us one, two levels tops. You should meet up with my brother Futen when you can."

Cora was watching Ikazuchi for the entire conversation when she thought she heard something coming from the elevator shaft. She turned to look but the light from the flare didn't reach far enough to see. Naruto paid no attention to this as he continued talking to Ikazuchi. "I'll take that under advisement. What was the second thing you can give?" He asked.

Ikazuchi did some sleight-of-hand and produced a peculiar item from the folds of his rags. As best as Naruto could tell what it was from what little light he had, it was golden and very decorative, had thin spherical shape to it and it was as long as his forearm. It had two sets of five prongs, one prong on each end arcing out and coming to a point like a diamond. "It's called a vajra and it's very powerful. Be careful how you use it." He handed it to Naruto who took it, examining the vajra. "What's a vajra, and more importantly how did you keep this from the guards?" He asked.

The old man tapped a digit to his temple, "This old dog knows a few tricks. A vajra is a weapon of considerable power when used correctly. It-" A noise coming from below cut him off, the rumbling sounds of a metal platform moving up. Ikazuchi's eyes widened in delight and he grabbed Naruto and shook him. "Ah-ha, perfect timing! You must go, quickly now! Get on the platform and get to the next floor so you can find your friends and fix this mess. And don't forget your promise." He said in his sudden burst of hysterics.

Naruto bowed his head and Ikazuchi pushed him away. Naruto grabbed Cora and made a dash for the platform. "Mata, come on. We're going up!" He hollered for his furry companion who was still contemplating whether or not to make a snack out of the man he was pinning to the floor. He growled one last time, released him and ran after Naruto.

They got to the hole and the rumbling grew louder. Naruto threw the flare down and waited for it to hit ground. "I've got a feeling that it isn't going to stop for us. It looks like there's only one thing to do." He shoved the vajra in the bag and wrapped his arm around Cora's waist. "Hang on, this might sting a bit." He warned her and jumped into the hole. Mata watched as Naruto jumped and shook his head, "How predictable, it's just like his friends said." He mumbled and jumped down into the darkness after him.

They were lucky as the elevator came up just as Mata went over the edge and everyone landed safely on it. As they rode it further up Naruto thought about the curious old man who gave him the weapon and thought it strange that the one question most people ask in his situation, didn't even come up. _"I can't believe that he didn't ask me how I got out of my cell."_ Naruto's mind went crazy thinking up reasons why that was. _"Maybe it was for the best. If you thought the story the elderly one told you were true, I doubt he would believe yours."_ Enra said.

Naruto turned his thoughts to his friends and focused on his next move. Because Mata didn't kill the other guard, word of his presence would soon spread and things would become more active and he would be hunted down and dealt with. This knowledge made Naruto smile and he remembered the note that Goturo left for him. _That's fine, I'd get found out sooner or later. _And he, Enra and Mata conversed as to how creative they should be.

(Back with Ikazuchi)

He listened to the noise die down and sighed. He snapped his fingers and a wolf with black eyes and electric blue fur shimmered out of nowhere. The atmosphere in the cell became charged with energy that came off the beast's coat and gave off a light blue glow. "Send word to everyone, I have found the one who will finally set us free. Help him in any way you can without being noticed, we can't let the cleaners get to him first," Ikazuchi commanded the wolf. "And tell the dark-haired one with the cursed eyes, that I've given the boy my vajra as he requested."

The animal bowed and disappeared from sight. Ikazuchi sat on the ground and meditated on the trials that were soon to come. He tightened the hand he used to shake Naruto's. _It truly is amazing; I sense so much power inside his body. There's no question how he got loose, but I wonder if he realizes how much power he has, and,_ He thought about the girl who was with him. _I wonder if he knows how much power the girl he has with him carries inside her. So young, and one of our kind to boot, but to be forced into that body, something else has a hand in this and I don't like where it may lead._

**A/N:** And that's the end of this chapter.

My thoughts went out to the ideas of getting ready for a major battle in the future so like any writer worth his ink I got creative and went big with the prep work(obviously I am implying a big fight). Why make a game out of the ninja hostages? What does the sadistic warden have in store for our Naruto and what is happening to him? Who is Cora and what is her story? Who's the old man behind bars with an unusual weapon and why does he have such a pet with him? What exactly are "the cleaners"? Why do you keep reading?

Just kidding, keep reading. Reviews!


	21. The Second Hunt

**A/N:** *sounds of running, door opening and slamming* Jeez, sorry I'm late. Shit's been crazy for a while. Welcome back fans, to yet another enlightening chapter of Demon Love starring your favorites and written by yours insanely. I do believe that since chapter fifteen there hasn't been any real fighting, and by fighting I do of course mean complete and total ass whippings (and some more brutal and gruesome stuff that I can't talk about in the author's notes). :)

Along the way we see how imaginative I can be for the puzzles that await for our 'hero' and any otherworldly creatures he may encounter. Let's read on and see…

The Second Hunt

(Seventh floor, with Naruto)

Bodies. Numerous bloody corpses were sprawled about on the ground, long since dead. Some were intact while others had been torn apart near the point he couldn't tell they were human body parts. This was the sight Naruto saw when he stepped off the elevator after it stopped and lit another flare. His foot tapped something and when he looked down he saw it was a head belonging to a guard, and nothing more. Part of his mask was torn, showing Naruto the poor soul's face, frozen in sheer terror, eyes bulging and mouth wide in a silent and eternal scream.

"What happened here?" Naruto said under his breath. Cora stood beside him and saw the bodies, her eyes going wide and she buried her face in Naruto's jacket. He placed his hand on her head to comfort the girl, sickened by the carnage. Farther down Naruto saw some open cell doors and could see more bodies' prisoner and guard alike, their forms in lifeless positions of flight. Mata walked around the carcasses sniffing them as he did. "Their scent in human, but the thing that killed them, hardly." He reported.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Naruto asked knowing he wouldn't like the answer. "It means you should be careful. We may not be the only ones out in the open." Mata replied, his tail twitching in anticipation. _Great. That's the last thing I need is to fight through all these dead people, and right at the start of my search._ The boy thought.

"_Naruto, I need to get a closer look at the dead. Upon close examination I might be able to tell what took place here." _Enra's voice rang through Naruto's mind. _"Fine, but please make it quick." _Naruto told him and gave his body to the demon. Enra looked through Naruto's eyes at the frightened Cora and patted her head. "It's alright child. Just keep your eyes closed until I say otherwise." She covered her eyes and kept her head down while Enra inspected several corpses.

"General injuries of those with intact bodies include broken bones and internal bleeding…crushed lungs and heart, both pierced by fragments of a shattered rib cage, are prime suspects for cause of death...what cause could bring out such an effect?" Enra muttered to himself as he sifted through what remained. He moved some bone fragments and picked up a heart for closer viewing. "Those who are meat puzzles show unusual puncture wounds aimed straight for their hearts…why tear one group apart post mortem?...unless another party did this…"

He moved on, making mental notes of things like how far the blood splatter went on the walls and the differences in the number of intact bodies to the ones in pieces. _"Well, what's the verdict?"_ Naruto asked growing impatient. "Patience and diligence are virtues among humans; I need some more time to analyze the results of my findings." Enra said looking over some nasty wounds on one corpse's back. _"Then tell me what you _do_ have so we can work with something. I don't like to be around this many dead people at one time."_

Enra gathered his thoughts and surveyed the gruesome area. "From what I can tell, there were two parties going after these people, whether on a rampage or they meant to slaughter them I cannot say. What I can say about them is one was supremely strong and excessively violent, the evidence shown in the torn and crushed bodies and how they are thrown around. Judging from the blood splatter patterns on the floor and walls it would appear that they used a claw-like weapon to do the damage, but strangely some of them were dead before they became like this.

"The other group was more merciful when compared to the first. Their weapon of choice is similar to a large needle or a short spear-like object to puncture these men's hearts. These types of marks appear more in those whose bodies have been turned to shreds. I am unsure as to why this is because I don't have enough to work with. If we can find out whom or what did this, then we can estimate if they pose a threat to us."

Mata prowled along the edges, looking into each cell for signs of life on the other side of those doors where he could. "It's either an empty room or a dead person with each cell I find. The bodies inside the cells don't have the same injuries the ones out here do. In fact, they may just have simply died of starvation," His nose cringed in disgust as the smell of rotten food mingled in with that of the smell of decayed flesh. "They haven't touched their provisions, looks like they just wanted it to end."

"_What a horrible way to die. I could never see myself doing that."_ Naruto thought in grief. Enra wiped the blood off his hands and stared at the many remains. "They chose the lesser of two evils, they grew terrified of whatever was waiting for them outside of those doors and they decided to face death their way and deal with their demons in Hell rather than to face the monsters out here. Even if they didn't, they most likely would have been thrown into the fray and end up like the others."

Enra gave control back to Naruto and he went back to Cora. The girl still had her eyes covered but was now on her knees in the blood of the dead, her body trembling. "Keep your eyes closed and I'll carry you. Got it?" She nodded through her shivers and Naruto picked her up and carried her in his arms. Carrying Cora, he walked over the many appendages until he got to one of the cell doors where Mata was looking through a viewing slot.

"I think there's someone inside this cell," He said staring through the dark. "I can hear faint breathing coming from inside but I can't see anything. I can't tell you who it is until we get inside, if you want to that is." Mata kept on staring at the darkness like he was waiting for something to happen. _"It could be one of your friends, but if that is the case the door may be booby-trapped. Be cautious."_ Enra whispered.

"Think we can get in?" The feline wondered walking away from the door to look at an arm. _"What we need to do is check the door for any sign that it's been tampered with. Any wires, parts of metal that's been welded, anything."_ Enra instructed Naruto and he told Mata the message. "That welding part isn't too far off, before I looked inside I saw the edges of the door." He pointed with his tail and Naruto noticed that the door's edges were _a part_ of the wall; the metal had been melded together.

"You may be able to blast it open but you have no clue as to what's behind that door. Stealth is an option, but after what I've seen you do, you might have a better chance to blow it off." Mata mused in a teasing manner that annoyed Naruto. _"I doubt even with your strength you could pull it off."_ Enra was pondering on an idea. _"But, maybe I can do something to help out. Grant me control."_

Naruto freed his body and Enra took over again, setting Cora down and immediately making hand signs. He laid his pointer and middle fingers of his right hand on his lips and blew on them. **"Fire Style: Flesh Wick." **He whispered and lashed out, striking the wall with said digits. They sparked up and a small white flame burst from his fingertips all in one swift motion.

Naruto saw the fire and was mystified by it and baffled at what Enra was planning on doing with it. Enra could feel Naruto's curiosity as he saw what the demon had made. He brought up the tiny flame, closer to his eyes. "The end result we're looking for is this door off, so I'm going to use a trick I picked up and burn through the point of contact between the door and the wall using this makeshift torch." He moved his fingers closer to the door, angling them at the long sliver of warped metal. The torch licked at the seam, trying to ride up the wall with little effect.

"_Nothing's happening, are you sure this will work?" _Naruto questioned Enra's method as he watched through possessed eyes. _"How can something so small and weak cut through the wall?"_ _"Now, now, child. Just because something's small doesn't mean it's weak." _Enra drew a deep breath and held it, focusing his attention on the work at hand. The tiny flame grew brighter and hotter and the metal glowed red, then white. Soon after, sparks had begun to fly off the incandescent metal in plenty as it bit and clawed through.

"Ah-ha, you see? Something small," Enra's torch had scorched a hole in the seam and traced it along the door. "Can still be powerful. Now, give me a little peace and quiet if you can. I need to concentrate to get the fire hot enough to burn through." Naruto kept his trap shut while Enra diligently cut through the last of it and let the door fall to the ground with a noise. "Mata, see if there's anything inside that we should be cautious of." Enra said.

Mata looked at him funny, "Why send me? Your body is less vulnerable to harm." "This is true, but you are spryer than I and you see better in the dark. You'll be fine." Enra brought his foot back and booted the feline in the cell. "Now get in there and say hello to our guest!" He said playfully. Mata landed gracefully inside and looked back with a glare. "Don't you know you shouldn't be mean to animals?" Enra's response was mocking laughter. "Bastard…" Mata cursed under his breath and went to look.

Even inside Mata still had a hard time seeing its occupant. _Strange, my eyes are perfect in the dark. Something else must be at work here._ "There's something blocking my sight in here, I can't see anything." He whispered behind. Enra looked around the entrance and went in. "It must be a justu of some sorts. If I remember right they say that every cell is uniquely made to be a perfect match to its occupant." He eyed the ceiling, the walls, and the floor for something, something that he thought would be helpful. Enra snapped his fingers once and frowned when nothing happened so he tried again multiple times, nothing happened.

"No light…probably part of the justu." He grabbed the bag at his side and pulled out a flare. "This should do it." He lit it and the room brightened up quickly, revealing a wall opposite from the door. It was like black glass but it had ripples on its surface in constant motion, like water tides. Enra touched the mysterious barrier and new ripples bounced off the current ones made from his touch.

Fascinated, Enra stepped back to admire it. "Very interesting, it's a barrier that prevents any light or fire chakra-based elements. It's very good security, it not for the loophole of a single flare." He looked down and at his feet, there was a seal the size of a melon. He placed the flare on the ground and examined it, grabbing items from the bag.

"_You're going to rewrite it, like you did with the others?"_ Naruto guessed. "That's right, but this one will take time, it's more complex than the others were before. Sometimes it's just easier to alter these things than break them and let something helpful go to waste. It's even better if we can copy the formula for future use." Enra took out a scroll and brush and opened it, showing other seal formulae written in it. He copied the seal down and rolled it back up.

"Now we can deal with this," Enra said using the brush to write around the seal, markings that Naruto recognized to be similar to the written language he saw Enra and Yunika use before. He wrote them in the shape of a pentagram and connected the markings. He made hand signs and placed his right hand over the seal. **"Demon Sealing Justu: Dark Star Seal Release!"** He called out and struck the seal with his palm.

The ground shook with a strong force, strong enough to crack the ground the seal was imprinted on. The barrier slowly faded away causing Enra to slap his knee in joy. "Now let's take a look at our friend here…" It was a young man, bloody and beaten with torn clothing. He sat in the center of the room with eight chains holding him, four attached to each arm in different positions, forcing them to be folded over his chest. Like Naruto, he had a metal mask covering most of his head, making him unable to see or hear.

Mata went bounding over to see the body. Under closer inspection he noticed the clothing the man wore was the same as those they crew wore on the Blue Drunkard. "It's one of the crewmen from Shobo's ship." He announced. _"You guys came here on a ship?"_ Naruto asked. Enra was just as curious and he asked the same question. Mata told them his side of what had happened starting from the temple and how he ended up at the prison.

"_So that's how they got here. Ask him what happened to the captain and his crew."_ Enra conveyed the message and Mata shrugged, "The last time I saw them they were at the mercy of the prison guard on the top floor. I was ordered by my mistress to see what was going on and report it back to her but after what happened to you…things got more complicated and I was told to keep an eye on you."

"Does that mean you've been outside? Are these friends of yours there too? And how long have you been doing this?" Enra questioned the feline and why he was practically given to Naruto. Mata looked Enra in the eye with a profound and confused gaze. "You mean you don't know?" Enra was puzzled at Mata's question and stopped to gather his thoughts.

In his silence, the sounds of metal licking metal echoed quietly behind Enra. Itachi was showing signs he was awake, lifting his head and trying to stretch his arms. "If he's one of ours, we should release him. His help could be invaluable, if he's as good as you say." Enra pointed out. Mata flicked his tail. "Agreed, he was very good on the boat. But take off his mask first, as a precaution."

Enra went to grab the mask and Itachi stopped moving, still as stone. Enra took this as the sign to go ahead and removed the mask. Itachi swung his head around after Enra took off the mask, blinked a few times and looked up at him. He squinted, trying to adjust with what little light was provided. "Who are you?" He asked. His voice was horse and he could hardly speak the words he did. _"He doesn't recognize me? Why?"_ Naruto asked.

"_Most likely because you looked normal when they found you, and the way you look now…It would be understandable if he didn't know who you were. And because of that, it could be dangerous telling him who you are, because of his possible paranoia. Let me handle this, I have an idea."_ Enra purposed and while he talked with Naruto, Itachi observed his surroundings.

He looked over every crack and crevice, eyes searching for something. There wasn't much to see in the simple light the flare gave off, even in the small cell. What he could see within the light seemed…wrong, looked wrong, like the light was ripples made from still water. Itachi looked past the man standing before him and the large beast that was with him and stared on through the opening. In the lower right corner of the hole he saw a small figure of a child peeking inside. He shook his head to clear his mind and when he looked again, it was gone.

"Something….doesn't feel right. What did you do to me?" Itachi muttered as best he could. Through his eyes the white-haired man looked at him with interest. He grew closer and leaned in to stare at Itachi face-to-face, "I have done nothing to you, except save your life you miserable man. Tell me your name." He ordered. "My name is Itachi Uchiha and who are you?"

The man smiled like the devil and played through his act, "Who I am isn't nearly as important as why I am here and that, my good Uchiha, is to release you from your bonds. I've heard of your feats, so I'm a little curious as to why you haven't broken out of here yourself yet. Or," He toyed with Itachi's chains, plucking at one like a string. "Maybe you can't escape because you've grown weak in your short time here, but not by your choice I bet."

Itachi tried to clear his head again to no avail. "What…how can you?" He tried and stopped. He activated his Sharingan to read the man now that he could see. It lasted for a few seconds then was cut short from strain. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to try that again if I were you. See these chains here; they have a redundant chakra leech/supply system etched into the metal, something thought up to prevent you from doing something like activating those eyes of yours. But I have the power to break you free if you wish." The man offered.

"Why would someone be sent to free me after all this time? What does Goturo gain from messing with me like this?" Itachi questioned himself. The man's face turned confused at Itachi's statement, "You've lost me, how long have you been in here?"

Itachi lowered his head and closed his eyes to help himself think. "They have a system in place where guards come three times a day to give me food, and as of now you're the ninety-first person to pay me a visit in this cell." After some calculating, Enra was colored incredulously and did them again. "That can't be right, but if it is then you've been in those shackles…for over a month."

"_WHAT!? If he's been here for a month, then we've been here for longer than that. What the hell happened?" _Naruto went on and on and Itachi rolled his eyes. "But of course you already knew that, this is just another ploy Goturo made to learn more about Naruto. So tell him that he can stop playing around and ask me what he really wants to know." Enra looked at Mata and the cat shrugged, "I can explain later, for now let's get him out. This one will be useful once he regains his strength." Enra put the revelation aside to deal with later. "It looks like it's your lucky day. We're going to get you out."

Itachi laughed harshly, "Even if I did believe you, how could you get me out?" Enra grabbed a handful of chains and pulled, hard. The metal fought and groaned but eventually broke under his strength. Itachi stared disbelievingly at the event that just happened while Enra felt the weight of the metal links. "Hmm, those ones were weaker than those in the lower levels…" He mused and tossed them aside.

He broke off the other pieces and helped Itachi to his feet. He was unsteady at first and nearly fell so Enra pulled Itachi's left arm over his shoulder to help support him. "What are you, if not an ally of the warden's?" Itachi asked. Enra smiled devilishly again, "It means I'm a friend of yours. So take your fortunes where you can friend."

The two stepped outside and Mata grabbed Enra's attention, "Hold on, If I recall didn't Goturo's message say something about rigging the cells to stop something like this from happening?" Enra thought about it for a moment. "Why yes, indeed he did. Seeing as it wasn't inside the cell, my thoughts would lean to something meant for us on the outside…"

As soon as those words left his mouth, an inhuman cry filled the air. A mournful scream, the kind that makes your hair stand up on the back of your neck, did the same to them. "And that would most likely be it. Mata, get Cora on your back and let's get moving before we have to find out what that was." Enra instructed to which Mata gave him a sharp look. "And don't give me those eyes. We have to protect the girl since she can't protect herself."

They found Cora, frozen stiff in fear, looking out into the darkness. Mata looked in the direction she was and narrowed his eyes. "What is it, what do you see?" Enra asked impatiently. Mata didn't answer right away. "I see people, about two dozen or so. But they don't look right," He shuddered and drew a paw over his nose. "Or smell right for that matter, they smell like rotten meat. Let me give some light." Mata took a deep breath and exhaled a ghostly-blue fireball. He did this again and again until the whole area was filled with light, and then they saw what the light revealed.

Mata was right; the people he saw didn't look right. Most of them had on guard uniforms and some had on prisoner's garb. They had pale skin with small bits of their bodies gone, past wounds that never fully healed on their arms, legs and chest. Their eyes were glowing bright yellow with blood-red streaks growing away from them. But the most disturbing thing was they were _eating_ the dead bodies.

"_What are they?"_ Enra grew sorrowful as he watched the corpses get devoured. "They're called jikininki, creatures who were selfish beings when they were alive and they are doing penitence in their deaths. Their avarice and self-wanting were so great that they were cursed and reborn in this sad state. They eat the human dead to survive and what worse they're self-aware, they know they're doing this and they hate themselves for it."

One such jikininki tore into an arm with sickening gusto, the sounds of its chewing on the old flesh disgusted Naruto and he would have emptied his stomach had he been in control. Another of the jikininki, an old guard, saw the others and a shrill shriek escaped its mouth. The other jikininki saw them and their cries joined in unison, amplifying the sounds with each voice.

"Didn't you say that they eat dead flesh?" Mata asked. Enra kept watching the undead creatures, "Yes, but there's nothing stopping them from attacking and killing live humans," He replied. He set Itachi down and grabbed Cora, shaking her and forcing her to snap back to reality. "Cora, I need you to stay with Mata, under his protection okay?" She nodded and rushed to Mata's side. Enra turned to the demon cat, "And you keep to Itachi. Watch over him until he gets his energy back, understand?"

"Say no more, I got it covered," He said and sat down next to Itachi. "What are you going to do?" Mata asked. Enra looked back at the jikininki gathering together. He flexed the hands he possessed and breathed deeply, "I'm going to stretch my legs and give these creatures the proper funeral they deserve." He took the stance he used to spar with Naruto; his left foot forward and his hands out and open. "**The First Stance: Earth Guard**." He whispered and readied himself for the first wave.

The jikininki rushed him, hungry for flesh. First it was three to charge ahead of the group. "Let's go then." One struck out with a right and Enra mirrored its move with his left fist. Enra saw for an instant that the jikininki had a claw instead of a hand as it wrapped around Enra's fist and tried to draw him in. Enra merely smiled and used its momentum to his advantage.

He drew back his left fist and threw out his right to strike its face. The force of the hit made the creature fly into its two companions and then them into the main group, resulting in a spectacular and comedic collision. _The claws would explain the wounds on the dead._ He thought. "You need to do better than that if you want a piece of this." He mocked.

"When I take this stance, no blow can do me harm. I am the very will of the earth personified. Now come, and be at peace!" He called and the ghouls screeched and rushed him again. A fist came from the left to be blocked by his left elbow while a swipe from the front was stopped by Enra grabbing its arm and swinging it to crash into the one on his left.

Another came from behind and two more from the front. The two facing him lashed out and he grabbed them too, using their momentum to throw them into the one sneaking up. Body for body, blow for blow, more and more kept coming and Enra fought them for each hit. _What they lack in fighting skill they make up for in numbers. If they were actual fighters, this would be a long match. But I don't have time to waste._

As Enra fought, some stragglers broke off and went for Mata, Cora and Itachi. Mata blew some fireballs to cover a wider area and he fought fang and claw on single enemies, but more grew attracted to the sounds of battle and there was only one of him. _This is growing to be a nuisance._ _I won't be able to keep up for long if they keep coming._

While they fought, Itachi studied Cora. He watched her shiver in fear as Enra and Mata duked it out. _Are you afraid for your life or for them getting hurt? _He focused so much on her that he didn't see one creeping from his blindside. Mata had gotten another one when he took notice. "Itachi, Cora, move!" He screamed and tried to take them. Enra was too far away and Mata had his hands full and Itachi tried to fight but was still too weak to move fast enough, so it was to everyone's amazement when Cora jumped up and pushed it with everything she had.

"No Cora! Stay away from them!" Mata yelled and made a dash for her. The jikininki was sent flying past Itachi, past Mata and even past Enra, crashing into the opposite wall some thirty yards away and barely in the light of the blue fireballs. The ghoul screamed again but this time not out of rage. Its skin started to crackle and break apart, with slivers of light shining through the cracks. It screamed again and again out of pain, writhing in agony as the light broke out through more cracks, eventually reaching its mouth and eyes. In a quick bright burst of light and one last scream the jikininki exploded flashily and perished.

The other jikininki, who witnessed what had happened, grew frightened and backed away from the girl and the two they fought with just before, as well as Enra, Mata and Itachi. When the ghouls had gone and left them alone, Enra looked at Cora in a new light. "Well, I don't know what she did, but that could come in handy."

**A/N:** And finally done here!

Sorry it took so long, been working crazy hours. I figured I should have introduced yet another one of demonic origin since there hasn't been a sighting for a while, and Itachi's back in the game. But the real interest is in the time passing…

More will be explained in the next chapter. Until then, R&R!


	22. Mata's Findings

**A/N: **Howdy everybody, and welcome back to another chapter of Demon Love. Sorry about last chapter, the fight scene and revelation of the time skip was a bit rushed so more on those subjects will be touched on in this chapter. In this round I reveal Mata's side of things for the past month, plus I divulge something special…should be fun!

Mata's Findings

(Seventh floor, with Naruto)

Off in the distance, more jikininki were watching and gathering, keeping an eye on their new meal while Enra, Mata and Itachi were in awe of Cora's little feat. "I've never seen a human do something like that before, but then again," Enra grinned with excitement. "This one isn't human and we might have just obtained an advantage in things to come." _"Maybe, but those things aren't going to leave us alone so easily…how's about letting me do some of the fighting?" _Naruto asked.

Enra could feel the boy's urge to fight grow after Cora's stunt and looked inward to see him in person. Oddly enough, Naruto, in his human form, was sitting patiently in front of the cage doors in quiet meditation. "So, I see you've changed back." Enra pointed out. Naruto raised his head, "Yup, figured I could in here. I mean, this is my mindscape after all…looks like you have too." Enra looked down and saw his old robes, neat and clean like the day they met. ""You said it yourself, this is your mindscape." Enra smirked.

Naruto stood up and cracked his knuckles, "I've done some thinking, and maybe now's a good time to try out my training with you to keep these things at bay. That, or scare them off." Enra crossed his arms and grew doubtful. "Are you sure about this Naruto? You never finished your training, remember?" The blonde laughed. "Then I'll do what I do best…" He snapped his fingers and his body turned back into his Demonic Ascension form. "I'll improvise."

Back in the real world, Enra gave back control and Naruto clenched his fists. "It's time I put my new strength and skills to the test." He muttered and charged on. "What do you think you're doing?!" Mata howled as Naruto left them. The jikininki screeched and ganged up on him, keeping away from the girl who basically blew up one of their own.

Naruto flew past the first, second and third ghoul and in a burst of speed struck them all at once with a right haymaker. Using the force of his momentum, he grabbed a fourth by its clothing, leapt over its head and flung it into three others upon landing. At this point he was in the middle of the large gathering of the undead. Naruto ran through hand signs and breathed in deeply. "Hope this works. **Demon Style: Death Echo.**"

A ripple passed throughout his body and his eyes flared up a deep amethyst. Every jikininki within range attacked, claws open and waiting for blood. In less time to think he was gone, practically blinked out of existence. They looked around and a double fist blow came from above. Naruto kicked out with both legs and caught two more in the jaw, taking out three at once, and blinked out again. They looked around to see where he had gone next and a sudden right hook landed on another, knocking the undead creature off its feet. Naruto grabbed it by the foot and swung it around several times like you would a mace, all in one motion, downing more jikininki.

He blinked out again and reappeared again and again and again, his speed magnificent and strength unrelenting, taking on more and more of the creatures that came. At one point he struck one jikininki square in the face and dropped it right then and there, taking satisfaction in watching it fall to the floor. "Come at me as many times as you want, I've got power to spare!" His chakra swirled around him and with a flourish he unleashed it unto them. It hit them all with the power of gale-force winds, knocking most over and slamming the rest against the walls and ceiling.

Mata watched the scene taking place from afar as the ghouls tried again and again to land a hit on him without success. The way Naruto moved was beyond what Mata could believe even for someone of his current skill and knowledge with demonic power. "Enra you crazy old fool, what have you been teaching this boy?" More and more jikininki came from everywhere and surrounded Naruto who kept beating all who stepped forward, but even he has his limits.

He hit one in the chest with a left open palm with more force than necessary, smashing it into a wall and crushing its rib cage. The jikininki tried to cry out but instead a bubbling sound came out. Naruto pulled out his hand, now dripping heavily with black blood. "I didn't mean to use that much power. What's going on Enra?" Naruto asked. Enra was watching the seals inside the cage, listening to the unusual heartbeat.

The veins bulged out more than normal and the beat had grown irregular, the main seal on the cage was dimming darker and glowing brighter. Enra ran to Yunika's seal and saw it was shaking, vibrating more like. "The amount of power coming from Kyuubi's seal has increased but the seals are growing unstable. It's pulling out too much chakra from you putting on a show. Stop showing off and control the output better."

Just as Enra said it, Naruto's body had begun radiating the dark purple aura from before. He felt more powerful, but to him it felt wrong. He looked down and inspected his body, the jikininki slowly backing away in fear. "I don't think I can for very much longer judging from the feel of it. But I think I might have an idea, something I've been thinking about for an occasion like this…"

With that he started beating on more of the ghouls, trying to make room. "Mata, move the others somewhere safe." He ordered. Quick as they could, Mata and Cora dragged Itachi back into his old cell. Naruto made a Ram sign and slowed his breathing to help calm himself down and focus. The jikininki regrouped and made a blitz for the boy. Lightning had begun to crackle wildly over his still form and the third eye mark appeared on his forehead; his eyes glowing with power. The aura vanished from his body and reappeared on his hands and he placed them on the ground. Naruto looked at the mass of ghouls with angry eyes. "As much fun as this has been, we're getting off schedule so it's time to say good-bye. **Demon Style: Burst Wave!**"

The chakra building up in his body and the lightning emitting from him was let out all at once and the end result was devastating: a powerful wave of purple chakra shot out in all directions from his hands, breaking apart the rock with a thunderous roar as it did and the lightning rose to the ceiling and rained down on the ghouls in great numerous arcs. The ground heaved and broke apart as the wave went farther hitting every jikininki in sight even throwing some in the air and catching them in the surges of the bolts, cooking what remained. Some of them screeched in pain and others didn't have the chance, their bodies were crushed by the sheer force of his attack or nearly vaporized by the power of the lightning. Mata poked his head out to see the destruction unfolding.

_It's just like that other time with the chains…_He thought. The chakra wave and bolts slammed hard against the metal and Mata saw they had a surprising effect; the bolts merely rode the walls upon contact while the chakra was slowly absorbed into the cold steel and as it did, it started to corrode and crumble away little by little.

After the shaking stopped and all the enemies done and dealt with, Mata left the safety of the cell to see what was left with the light coming off of his ghastly flames, still hanging in the air. The ground was completely destroyed and there wasn't a sign of a live jikininki anywhere. At the center of the wreckage there was a deep crater and in the middle of that crater, stood Naruto. Dark purple chakra surrounded him in a small tempest; his body covered in small sparks. His eyes were feral and wicked; glowing brightly with the third eye shining just so. Naruto turned his head in Mata's direction, but the look Mata saw was not a kind one. His eyes were narrowed in a frightening rage and with the light of the fire balls to his back illuminating his silhouette, it made the image more fearsome.

Naruto began advancing towards Mata just as Cora walked out of the cell. "Cora, get back inside the cell. Please…" Mata ushered the girl too late. Cora saw Naruto as he was and at first she was happy, then confused. Naruto went on, releasing a constant vicious feeling of murderous intent that Mata caught on. He stood in front of Cora and hissed at Naruto. "Enra, what's going on in there?" He demanded. Naruto's ominous silence almost made Mata sweat out of the unknown fear presenting itself.

Naruto didn't answer and Enra didn't respond either. Cora tried to go to him but Mata stopped her, at the same time Naruto stopped moving. Mata took notice and readied himself for whatever might come next. But what came next, he didn't expect: Naruto spoke a warning, in a voice not his own or Enra's, like gravel being ground together. "**Don't move.**" He blinked out again and reappeared in front of Mata and Cora, right hand posed to strike. Mata flinched and Cora didn't move and Naruto attacked.

To Cora she saw it in slow motion, never blinking. Naruto's hand was above his head, then in front of her face, slowly passing her by. She watched him as it went past her, and then landed on the throat of a jikininki behind them. Slamming the creature against the wall to keep it in place, Naruto and Cora was eye-to-eye less than a foot away from one another.

Calm gold met intense amethyst in a stare down of sorts, both of them unyielding. The jikininki squirmed in spite of Naruto's grip, making quite a noise. "**Sorry about that, it seems I missed one.**" And with that, he crushed ghoul's windpipe without much effort and that was that. He broke off the stare and looked down at Mata, still flinching. "**Mata…**" The cat opened his eyes and a shiver ran down his spine. "**I believe it's time you gave us an explanation on the time you spent here and what you've found. We can't afford any more surprises like that one.**" He said holding up his hand now thickly covered with the dead ghoul's blood.

Mata had seen many things, wonderful and horrible, but nothing came close to those eyes he saw and the feeling they gave off. _What has been done to this child to turn him into something like this? _He watched as the light went away from those terrible eyes and they returned to normal, the third eye faded away. The tempest of chakra that violently encircled Naruto died down and vanished as did the sparks along with it. Mata sighed, relieved. "I do believe you are right, I'll go see to Itachi."

Naruto wiped off the blood on his hands and when he talked his voice was normal again, "I needed to figure out a way to level out the amount of chakra I used, so I decided to simply cancel out the large amount building up by using the same amount to vent it. Sorry about that though, I'm not sure what came over me. When I saw that last one, I just snapped. Are you okay?"

Cora nodded and looked at his hands, still covered in blood. Naruto caught that and raised them up to her face. "What is it? Is there something else on my hands?" She grabbed them and rubbed both with her hands; the look on her face was a sad one. The blood glowed with her touch and disappeared off his skin as though it was never there.

Wide eyed, Naruto inspected them. "How did you…oh wait you can't answer me anyway," Cora nodded again, still sad about something. "Well, thank you." Naruto said dropping them to his side. The two went back into the cell to find Mata with Itachi in a hushed conversation. Itachi saw them and tried sitting up, the most he could do was wince in pain and lay back against the wall. "We were just talking about you, and I've discovered some things about our time here for the past month. Part of it should shine some light on you two as well." Itachi said pointing at Cora and Naruto.

Naruto sat down with them, Cora beside him. Naruto had Enra take over again willfully upon his request. "Good then, tell us everything. Don't leave anything out, no matter how small a detail it may seem." Enra gave Mata a silent signal which Mata understood and spun off his story. "This started up a few days after the leaf ninja arrived on the island…"

(Three days after Leaf's arrival, with Mata)

The sounds of mice running on the floor could be heard alongside the constant drip-drip of water, and Mata in his small cat form was running down the halls of the first floor. Two guards walking together saw Mata as he ran past them and they thought nothing of it. He ran farther and slowed when he came into a spacious room, where many S-ranked, yet small time criminals and villagers were kept and watched.

"Mistress Baba! Mistress Baba!" He said in hurried whispers among the crowd. Passing some people and looking around some more, he paused to take a breath only to be snatched up by a pair of aged hands. Mata saw it was his mistress as she put him on her lap. Baba grinned big, "Mata, you should be more careful in how you address me in situations like this. You could give both of us away." Mata bowed in apology. "I'm terribly sorry, but I have new information regarding the boy."

A figure sitting within earshot stood up and joined their talk. A large hand patted the Mata's head and the smell of salt filled the cat's nostrils, "Good to see you again feline." Mata looked to see Shobo, still in uniform with a smile on his face. "Hello Captain, I'm gladly surprised to see you too, albeit under these conditions. I would have thought you and you crew would have tried to take back your ship by now." Mata said.

Shobo sat down and sighed, "Oh believe me I would have tried a dozen times over and then some to reclaim my vessel, however Baba thinks it wise to wait before attempting that." He responded shooting Baba a look. "Some things are worth the wait. Given time you will come to see that. But enough of that," Baba brought Mata to her face. "Now, tell me what you've learned." Mata climbed up on her shoulders and whispered into her ear. Baba's face softened and her grin vanished. "Oh my, that will put us behind a bit. Do the others know yet?" Mata shook his head. "Good, let's keep it that way for now."

Shobo looked at Baba with concern, "You don't want to tell them yet? You know they'll be asking sooner or later." "If I tell them now, there's sure to be a riot soon after. When that happens a lot more people will end up getting involved than need be." Baba replied looking at the sea dog with a bored look. The demon witch returned her gaze to her servant. "I have new orders for you Mata: I want you to keep tabs on this boy. With _him_ lurking around we'll need as much information as we can get." Baba commanded.

"How should I? The last I saw of him it was…a little chaotic." Mata pondered. "I have faith in you. I know you'll find a way." Baba smiled big again. Mata got a bad vibe from that smile of hers believing something wasn't going to end well and he was right too.

(Days later)

Mata was sneaking along a hallway on the eighth floor, eavesdropping on the constant chatter from the guards hoping to get something useful. A small group of guards were playing a game of cards amongst themselves and Mata was hiding in the shadows, keeping eye and ear on them. "Got any fours?" One asked with a no as another's reply. "So did you hear about the recent incident near the Hell Gate?" A different guard asked. A fourth scoffed and drew a card, "Which one, the one with the Devil or with the warden's pet?"

"I heard that the Devil tried to fight that thing before he got caught by the men up stairs. I never heard of a man who could put that thing in its place other than the warden. I mean there is a reason Goturo is the warden in the first place, isn't there?" A fifth guard questioned. The first took a pair from his hands and laid them down. "You're new here right? You don't know much about this place enough to say something like that. It isn't the beast or the prisoners you should watch out for, it's the warden when he gets mad…" He shuddered in thought.

"So what did happen at the Hell Gate?" The newbie inquired. The other four passed glances between themselves. "Might as well, it won't hurt." The third gave. "Rumor has it that the Devil almost broke free of his chains, and he was put in the Hell Gate in the first place! The warden even had to use his justu to hold him down. And now…" He waved the newbie over to lean in. "Now I heard that he's doing something new with him, some kind of interrogation."

Mata doubted what the guard proclaimed in his whispers. He saw what had happened to the boy, how he got struck down. But then he remembered what happened afterwards and another shiver went down his spine. So he decided to go see for himself exactly what the man meant…

(Down at the Hell Gate)

_You have got to be kidding me…_The demon cat's eye started to twitch out of irritation as he sat in front of the only real obstacle in his path: a giant closed metal door. "Well, this is a setback." He grumbled. He turned to leave when a strong odor passed his nostrils, a powerful smell that reminded him of a place he long since left. His eyes turned beastly and he glared back at the door, "What do you have in there this time, Goturo?" He growled in silence.

He moved closer to the door and jumped up to the viewing slot to see what was inside. The room was dimly-lit with green flares but it didn't matter to him, he could see everything perfectly. The scars from Naruto's attempt to destroy his bonds remained, as did the boy and with him was Goturo. Naruto was still and he couldn't tell what Naruto's state was, but he could see the cut was there on his chest. Mata could hear the man as he talked to himself. "…glad it's been dealt with and about time too. Now that it's out of the way, I should be able to get started."

In his right hand he held the same strange glass orb from before; it throbbed loudly and glowed brighter. It flashed brightly once and a white misty essence emerged from the ball. It floated forward and enshrouded Naruto completely. It took some time for a reaction but finally, Naruto's hand twitched. Mata watched in amazement as Naruto's head came up and Goturo saw he was awake. His eyes were like Kyuubi's but more of a dull red, like he was in a daze. _I don't understand…is he alive or dead? With that damned scent in the air I can't tell from here. _The warden smiled, "At last, you've woken up from your deep slumber. Can you understand me?"

The dazed ninja nodded briefly. "Wonderful. Now," His smile grew. "Tell me all of your secrets. Tell me your past, your life, your experiences, everything." The voice of the demon Kyuubi came out with monotone vibes. "**Ask of me what you will, but be warned: if you are not of proper blood then there will be no joy. Only sorrow will remain.**"

Goturo blasted him an angry look, "What is that supposed to mean? Explain yourself!" Naruto's body worked like a puppet, his movements slow and jerky. He looked at Goturo with a dead stare, "**Humans and their weak bodies are unsuitable and unable to wield the great and terrible powers we possess. Only certain abominations can use the powers granted by those Hell-born.**"

"Abominations? Do you mean a human housing a demon? Answer me!" Goturo demanded. "**The monstrosities that humans have created to harness great power, these are examples of Man's reach attempting to exceed his grasp. Even in this sad state, I can tell more of these experiments have been done, one of them on a rather large scale.**" A dull smile spread on his face. "**My, how the mighty have fallen, for one such as yourself to practically beg for power from the likes of me…**" Naruto's eyes closed and his head fell.

"No! Dam it all, it still isn't enough to keep it awake." Goturo yelled in anger. He took a few seconds to calm down. "No matter, I just need to take out some more and then I'll have everything I need." He gripped the orb tighter and the white mist turned to red and still connected to Naruto, it drew out a shining red substance into it.

_What are you doing to him? _Mata watched as Goturo drained Naruto of…something. He watched for a little while longer until his arms grew sore so he fell from the hole and went to hide somewhere…

(Present time)

"And that's how the month went by for me. I was ordered to keep tabs on you and only you and all I got was this one at the bottom of the prison under interrogation with something inside him. If anything else had come up, Mistress Baba would have called for me, but until then every day I do the same thing for the past month. It was only recently that I was called back to receive my newest order, which was to find this one and see if I could release him from his imprisonment. She will be glad…at least." Mata moaned motioning towards Naruto.

Itachi listened carefully and patiently and thought about his words. "What about my partner, or the other ninja we came with?" "After I discovered him and Cora, you were the only one from the boat I've found." Mata answered. Itachi looked at the red head. "So the girl's name is Cora? And the one who released me?" He fished. Enra sighed and waved his hand around. "Call me Enra, it's all you really need isn't it?"

"Until I can get my strength back, I guess it will have to do," Itachi gave in. "But I wonder how you came to be in here…and what Goturo wanted with you or the girl?" Enra shrugged casually. "Beats the hell out of me, I know plenty of things but what he wanted from either of us is beyond my grasp." Itachi put his back against the wall, "Now that I'm free again, what's the plan?" He asked.

Enra snapped his fingers, "I've already got that part covered. Mata and Cora here will stand guard and watch out for anything that comes out. You need your energy back soon or all of us will face bigger problems later on, so you'll just have to rest. And I will meditate. I used up a bit of chakra back there so there's no way around it. Once we're all rested, we can go on looking for the others."

Everyone thought this worked well enough, so that's what they did. Itachi was kept near the doorway in case of a quick escape was needed and Enra sat in a corner. He went inside the mindscape to find Naruto once again sitting in front of the cage doors like nothing had happened. "That was a risky move you pulled back there." Enra played on the boy.

Naruto shrugged, "Hey, it worked didn't? Plus we got Itachi out, and I learned a bit more about my new powers." Enra put a hand to his face and groaned. "Yes, at the risk of taking out this prison and most of the country with it." Enra looked back on the fight. "Come to think of it, there was that unusual chakra, and that mark appeared again. There's a good chance that the two are connected and I might have an idea about the lightning…"

Naruto sat quietly, waiting for Enra to finish. "But I still need more to work with and more time to think. For now, don't use up so much power. As much as I liked the new technique you thought of to help with it, it shouldn't be something you want to use constantly." Enra stopped and looked up. Something outside grabbed his attention and he left, telling Naruto he would be back shortly.

Enra opened his eyes to see Mata sitting on his lap, a common thing you would see from a normal cat. Enra saw this as amusing and chuckled some, stroking the creature's back. "What is it Mata?" Mata purred lightly and rubbed his head against Enra's hand. "I remembered something earlier that might prove beneficial. The walls here are meant to absorb chakra to give strength and enforce them whenever it presents itself in the air or comes in contact with it. When the boy fought and used that huge amount, some of it made contact with the wall and it couldn't absorb it, when it tried it rusted up and fell apart."

Enra was pleasantly surprised at this. "Really, is that so?" He put his other hand to his chin, "That could prove to be very helpful indeed. Thank you Mata." Enra let the cat remain on his lap while he returned to the mindscape and told Naruto what he just learned. "So what does that mean? My chakra can burn the walls here?" Naruto turned excited and his mind went crazy with ideas.

Enra held up his hands, "Hold on there Naruto, I don't think that's the case entirely. I think the case here is that the walls in here are meant to absorb _human_ chakra, but what do you think would happen if _demonic _chakra touched it? Maybe that's the difference, maybe something happened to your chakra to make it like that? It only goes to show this place wasn't meant to hold someone like you because the fact is," He said assuredly. "Now you aren't human anymore."

Naruto sat in silence but Enra could feel a change coming from him and it wasn't good. Naruto looked up at him from his spot with a livid glare. "Let's get one thing straight here: I'm a human with demonic power, not something that goes after innocent people for their blood or whatever they need to survive. I haven't worked this hard and gotten this far just to be called something dark or evil. What I have doesn't matter; it's what I do that defines me. Understand?" His eyes didn't change nor did his form, but Enra could still feel waves of almost inhuman rage come off him. _I don't know what this child went through in his past, but I can see it troubles him greatly. But whether or not he denies it, the truth is as plain as day after seeing it first-hand myself: he's turning into something new._

Enra considered this all the while on the outside Cora was watching for anything. All was quiet, even in the wake of Naruto's rampage. The jikininki had up and left and haven't returned, but that didn't mean a thing to her. Ever since the eighth floor, Cora had a bad feeling she was being watched by an unseen enemy from the shadows, but in a place like this there were shadows everywhere and off in one was a figure hiding in its depths. The new comer stepped out of the darkness and moved towards the girl in the cell entrance. The person wore a red cloak with a design of black droplets falling from the left side of the head cover.

"My precious pets, you hurt them. No one hurts my poor creatures. May my god give me strength and in turn I give to him new sacrifices." Brandishing a three bladed scythe they advanced on Cora with dark thoughts playing out in their mind.

**A/N: **And that's that. Hope everyone liked the surprise.

I didn't give enough in the fighting the last chapter so I figured I'd put more into this one and trying to think of a way to fix Naruto's chakra issue and this is what I came up with. Given the time Mata spent keeping tabs on should give some light on some questions people might have, trying to explain to Itachi what really happened to Naruto would most likely have been a bad thing since he still _is _after him, so to most unnoted readers Enra gave Mata a signal to keep some things out of the story. And Cora has unknown powers, so yea. Gonna let your minds roll a bit with that one. As for the rest, you'll just have to wait and see what comes next just like all the others.

Last time I forgot to read off the new justu so I'll do it here:

Old justu:

**Fire Style: Flesh Wick: **A justu that allows the user to spark up a small flame with their fingers that works the same as a torch. The more fine-tuned the chakra is, the hotter the flame burns.

**Demon Sealing Justu: Dark Star Seal Release:** Used to break D-to-B rank seals using demonic writing in combination with a sealing formation.

**First Stance: Earth Guard:** One of Enra's fighting styles. More will be released on this justu later.

New justu:

**Demon Style: Death Echo:** One justu Enra taught Naruto in the short time they had, this technique increases the speed of the caster, so much so that it gives the appearance of "blinking" from one spot to another. More will be released on this justu later.

**Demon Style: Burst Wave:** A justu of Naruto's design, he uses it to release the pent up chakra from within the seal by sending the same amount built up into his hands similar to how he creates his Rasengan, but instead he simply pushes it through and it blasts away. In Naruto's altered state, lightning springs forth from his body to add to the destruction.

And that's it for now. R&R!


	23. Faith vs Will

**A/N: **And here we have another chapter of Demon Love, filled to the brim with goodies. I do believe that the badassery of last chapter fulfilled the bloody desires of everyone but I can't speak for you all so, there you go. HOWEVER! I did think it was time for Naruto to cut loose a little and give a sample of his darker side. I thank the reviewers and your answers will come shortly. Onward to the next chapter!

Faith vs. Will

Enra and Itachi were trying to get some extra rest in from the harsh time they've had so far. The sounds of peaceful snoring filled the small space, most of it coming from Enra. Mata slept soundly on Enra's lap, his ears twitching. All throughout the quiet, Cora sat at the opening keeping watch with what remained of Mata's fireballs. After what she just experienced, she was put on edge from the whole affair. At the time, watching Naruto up close like that was both exhilarating and terrifying to her. Remembering those dark eyes and the intensity they had…they brought an itching to her mind that she couldn't scratch.

Cora yawned, a clear sign of boredom and the need for sleep was overcoming her. She knew that she had to keep watch but fighting sleep was a different battle. After almost nodding off Cora could hear faint tapping sounds. She looked around trying to see what could be making the sounds. _Tap, tap, tap, tap,_ they came from beyond the light. Then, a loud scraping sound of metal scraping against metal came from the farthest dark corner nearest to the cell.

Cora's eyes were greeted with the source of the noise as it stepped out into the light: a three bladed scythe with its edges cutting into the steel wall held in its right hand and its cloaked wielder emerged from the darkness. The weapon was removed from the wall and pointed at Cora. "You girl," It spoke; light yet grave tones escaped the hood, clearly the voice of a man. "What are you doing out of the trophy room?" Cora didn't know how to respond to this, she didn't understand who person was or even what he meant by "trophy room".

He lowered his weapon. "Well, it doesn't matter. You'll go back soon enough. But I'm not here for you right now," The hood aimed in the direction of the gaping hole and walked towards it. "I'm here for the Devil and his new friend. Stay out of my way and I'll deal with you next." Cora stood up and spread her arms, blocking the man's route. He stopped in front of her and simply stood, the shadow of his hood like a big black eye staring at Cora. She couldn't see his face, but the change in his voice suggested he was amused at her action. "You mean to stop me girl?" Cora nodded a fierce look on her face.

"You would help them when they don't even know what you are? Now that's a laugh." She pictured him smiling underneath that hood and that image made her angry, the same way she felt when the jikininki attacked Itachi. She tried to push him like she did with the ghoul, but both her arms were grabbed with the man's other hand before they could make contact. "Oh there won't be any of that. I've seen what happens when you try your little tricks." He said and raised the scythe threateningly.

"Maybe I should cut off one of your hands just to make sure-" He was cut off, forcefully in fact, by a sudden flying fist to his chest, breaking his grip on Cora and making her fall to the ground. He stumbled but recovered his footing. Naruto, who overheard everything, was the one who had gotten up and attacked him. He looked at his assailant, "So, you're the Devil I take it?" Cora rubbed her wrists and slid back some. "You keep your hands off her, you hear me?" Naruto growled at the enemy in anger. "She's under my protection. If you hurt her, you will pay for it."

The scythe wielder chuckled at Naruto's threat, "Is that so? My, my, don't you look scary…your title fits you well." He bowed in mockery which only made Naruto even more heated. "Who are you and what do you want? After that mess with the jikininki I'd rather not have to fight so soon again. But if I have to, I won't hesitate to put you in your place." Naruto secretly waved behind him for Cora to wait in the cell.

She got the hint and scampered back in. "You're really going to protect that girl? You don't even know what she's capable of and yet you'll help her?" The hood tilted upwards. "She was naked, locked inside a box prison, surrounded by weapons that were locked inside a massive vault. It would have been wrong not to help her when we found her." Naruto argued.

The man straightened upright and laughed, "Maybe if she was human, but that girl you're so pressed to keep safe is far more dangerous than you realize, to you, me, and everyone else in this place. To be honest, I think she should have been dealt with sooner." Naruto was having trouble trying to keep his temper in check, his eye color flashing from blue to purple and back. "I'm warning you, say one more word..." Enra however was against the idea. _"Naruto, you must keep calm. If you don't you'll lose control again and use up more chakra."_

"_I know that but this guy is practically begging for it, and he attacked Cora. That should be reason enough to fight him."_ Naruto countered. _"Even so, there are some battles you must be smart about and not flail around angrily like a child. If forced to, I will have to take control to keep you calm."_ Naruto scowled mentally. The man set his weapon to his back and waved his other hand around with flare, "You wanted to know who I am and what I'm after? You can call me Hood, for well-kept reasons, and what I'm after is you my hellish looking friend."

"It seems like a stupid question, but what do you want with me?" Naruto asked. Hood scratched the top of his hood. "It should be obvious, I'm here to reclaim you and put you back in your cell. Initially I had planned on my pets to tend to that but after the severe and brutal beatings you brought down upon them, with the help of that girl no less, now I have to get my hands dirty."

He swung his weapon around expertly with the one hand. "But there's no way around it. Either capture or kill anyone that gets out, that's my job and with the prison's reputation they hardly have any need for me in that area so most of my time has been used to clean out the cells to make room for more. You can see how I can appreciate this change of routine and get back to the old, but they don't make them like they used to so do me a favor, don't go down too quickly."

He charged forward and brought the blade up, swinging wide from the right. _"Damn it Naruto, let me take care of this."_ Naruto ducked and Enra took over, reaching for the bag in mid-possession. Hood swung back up and brought it down. Enra's hand shot out of the bag and stopped the scythe using the end of a scroll against the snath of the weapon. "If that's the way you want to do this then allow me to treat you with a little something I picked up."

He opened the scroll revealing more than a dozen seals. "How about we try one of these?" He bit his thumb and raked it across one resulting in a large explosion of smoke. Hood backed away and then jumped back further when something came out at him from inside the smoke. The area cleared and Hood saw what Enra had called out from, and laughed. "You plan on fighting me, with that?"

Enra had in his hands a six-foot-long onyx-black scythe with a short outward slant correcting itself near the end closest to the ring with a long and wide white blade from beard to toe, with a reverse-serrated pattern along the chine aiming for the tang. From within the curve of the snath, small distinctive and decorative holes could be found ending at the heel, numbering thirteen. The weapon was truly wicked and looked as though it could cut you just from looking at it, a masterpiece in doing what weapons were crafted to do.

"I see no reason why I can't try. You've shown me yours so it's time I showed you mine," Enra twirled the scythe in one hand, swinging it from behind and aiming the blade at Hood from below. "Besides, I'm not that bad at using this type of weapon. And judging from what I've seen from you so far, you're pretty good. I'd like to test my skill against yours, after all that's what it comes down to in the end isn't it?"

Hood rolled his head around his shoulders, "I suppose so, but when certain circumstances rise up in fights, the rules are always subject to change." Enra laughed, "Agreed, spoken like one who has seen many battles. So," He said readying his weapon. "Shall we dance the blood waltz and see whose metal has more bite?" And from there they had begun to clash.

Back in the cell, Itachi was resting as peacefully as can be considered. Off in his dreams he had no knowledge of the proceedings going on outside. He was dreaming of the cell he was currently in and chained back up, but the cell's features were distorted just like when his mask was taken off. The shadows of the floor, the walls, and the ceiling showed faces of no one in particular. Voices echoed through the wavy scene, mumbled and meshed together. "Don't….Can't…Save…Help…" These were the bits and pieces he deciphered from the spectral whispers. _This feels just like before, when I woke up._

One voice was louder than the rest, a sharp clear note in the maelstrom that swarmed him, rang out inside his head. "Primordial chaos is one of the natural laws of this world." The sudden change took Itachi off guard as did the unexpected appearance of a shadow of a small boy that stood before him. Its body was the same as everything else in the dream all except it for its eyes which were a deep black. "It is the conflict in the hearts of humanity that causes the chaos witnessed every day. Born from this chaos is a need to bring order, establishing a sense of construction and safety to the masses that feel the pressure of fear building in their minds; a cycle that repeats itself, decided by archaic powers of tremendously powerful beings long since gone."

"I don't understand…what are you talking about?" Itachi asked the shadow, confused all as hell. "Imagining how the new status quo would affect the world and what it would bring would be terrifying, no boundaries would be made, no limit to the wide-spread change that would inevitably come. Fear of change ultimately leads to fear of the unknown, what can kill all in the end." The room started shaking and breaking apart; the metal and stones falling from their places into nothingness. All that remained was the chains holding Itachi and the pair of dark eyes. As he stared on into the oblivion that awaited him below the black eyes stared on into him at close proximity to his face. "Time passes on like the wake of the wind, never to once again be experienced the same way. As we see the darkness and light struggle with each other in our hearts that are so human, we forget the reasons and gifts behind how and why we are given these two sides of ourselves."

The chains broke off from their invisible holdings and Itachi fell in silence, hearing one last scrap from the darkness as it swallowed him up. "All sentient things that fear the unknown will soon be aware of what waits in the dark. The cycle will be broken. The long sleep is over. The beckoning has begun."

Itachi opened his eyes to the real world, his thoughts still with the dream he had not moments ago. Shortly after the fact he heard the sounds of battle just outside. Mata was watching from the edge of the opening once again with Cora hiding behind him. "I see you're awake. If you haven't heard it already, we have new company. Enra's holding his own for now but it wouldn't hurt to have some back up."

Itachi flexed his hand and clenched it approvingly. _It may not be much, but it will suffice._ He tried to stand but his legs were shaky at best. "I think I have enough to offer assistance. Who is he fighting?" Mata pointed with his paw at the action going down. Itachi saw the two warriors fighting. Hood was giving a barrage of slashing attacks, keeping Enra on his toes just dodging them all with a tired look on his face. Hood aimed a strike at Enra's head and he dodged it by leaning back but he went too far and flipped backwards using his hand to steady his momentum.

Hood saw this opportunity and took it, taking a sweep at Enra's arm before he could move. Enra however blocked it using the handle against the tip of one of Hood's blades. Even though Hood's weapon was smaller than Enra's, he was stronger than Enra had thought. "You're pretty good. This isn't the first time you used a scythe is it?" Hood asked. Enra pushed off Hood's weapon launching the two away from each other. "No, it isn't. But I rarely use something like this so it seems a fair field." He replied.

Upon landing, Enra raked forward with a wide swing to the right which his opponent blocked with ease. He reversed the blade and attacked Hood's left in frenzy. Too fast to block, he ducked down and was met with the handle. _The second attack was a feint. _Hood thought bending down even lower and dove for Enra's legs. Enra vanished from sight and Hood's move missed. He regained himself and searched the area for him. "Looking for something?"

Enra was standing atop the scythe head, the weapon implanted into the ground. He cocked an eyebrow, "For all that talk, your moves come off as predictable." Hood laughed and slapped his knee. "Is that all you can do too? Dance around and make jokes?" A smile grew on the smoke demon's face. "Only when I'm bored, you see. I haven't been given a chance to really break the rust. You must understand, I haven't had a good fight in a long while now and I do mean a _loooong_ while so I apologize for being a bit out of practice." He said stringing out the word to prove his point.

Enra covered his face with a hand. "So far I've fought one child, over forty grown men, a monster, and as of now, my own impulses. You tell me not to go down too quickly. As an honorable fighter, I'll give you the same advice." He moved his fingers and stared at Hood with hungry eyes, yearning for battle. "Don't go out too quickly or I won't be satisfied." Making hand signs, he prepared himself for the second part of the fight. "**Demon Sage Art: Smoke Mirage.**" Vast plumes billowed out from beneath his coat and begun to fill the space they stood. He grabbed his weapon and vanished into the smoke. Hood stood still, waiting patiently for his opponent's next move.

Thoughts swirled in Enra's head like a storm. _My advantage, my speed and abilities. His advantage, his power and skill with his weapon. I can sense that this isn't the full extent of his power but if that's the case here, then why is he holding back? I know he wants to capture me alive and I know I can't let him do that, but he could put in a little more effort._ For now Enra gained a new advantage with his justu active, reducing visibility all around. "Let's see if you can find me in this thick cloud." Enra shouted through the smoke.

Hood was passive, no movement at all, like a fisherman waiting patiently in a boat with a line in his hand. "Tell me something." The shifting smoke seemed to pause at the demand. "I see things differently than you do, clearly. I see that child is a problem, an out-of-control fire ready to burn everything and all its missing is a spark to set the world ablaze. You've seen what she did to my pets, did you not?" Enra manifested from the smoke. "I did, and suffice to say I'm impressed. I could use something like that to help get out of here. But we agree on one thing," Enra smiled. "She is a child, which means what you make of her doesn't necessarily make her to be."

Hood gave a long sigh. "That may be true, but how can you put faith in that? I put my faith in my god who sends me on my path and blesses me with the gifts I have. My power is proof that my faith isn't for not." Enra's face had gotten an annoyed expression. "Ah god, a hollow word that people put their hopes in. What has your god or any god for that matter done to better this world when not offered something to make the change?"

Hood seemed amused. "Have we a little resentment for the heavenly hierarchy?" "That's one word for it; in my past my fortune hasn't had a good run with the gods. To me I take pride in humanity instead of divinity." Now Hood was annoyed, "And why is that? What could possibly be the reason not to put faith the old creators of this world?" Enra had begun to laugh and laugh and laugh as though Hood had told him a great joke. He laughed so hard tears had welled up in his eyes. "It isn't obvious yet? The reason is humans are so interesting."

Enra wiped his eyes and glided a hand through the air, taking the smoke with his hand and changing it. With a finger he carved out the form of a human, a shape that moved with his hand, like a puppeteer handling a marionette. "Humans are born under different signs and stars, raised by different beliefs and morals, and die by their own hands or another's hand. Intervention can change what is, what has been, and what will be in all life." He made the smoke puppet dance, the body swaying back and forth.

"All it really takes is one small event to trigger an emotional reaction and a change in a person will manifest from within. Depending on the trigger, the change can make a criminal a paragon of light for the world," The puppet's features changed; a sword and a shield grew from its arms, turning it into a virtuous knight. "Or corrupt the most honorable and make them the embodiment of its destruction." Again the features changed, but were more grotesque. The weapons turned to claws and wings sprouted from its back and the valiant knight turned into a monster.

"It all comes down to free will in my books, when the lives of people come into play. They can choose what happens next." Enra waved his hand through his creation and the shards of it hung around. Hood inspected his weapon and turned it over in his hands. "I can sympathize with that in a way. But in the end it's all a matter of opinion. Let's see who wins out then: faith in a god or the will to survive." He said drawing the scythe back. "But it is strange, if we weren't fighting each other I feel like we could have a deeper conversation about this."

He threw his scythe at Enra's hazy body, plowing through it and scattering it. In the smoke Enra saw that it was connected by a strong fiber wire hidden up Hood's sleeve. "How useful, attaching something like this so you can make long-range attacks." Enra solidified with his hand grabbing the wire. "However without the right speed and reflexes, it can create a wide opening. Not to mention it looks damaged, very damaged in fact. I doubt that it'll last much longer." Enra acknowledged and Hood pulled back on the cord. "Food for thought." Enra got out before he broke apart again.

"But I guess it doesn't matter." Once last time, he rematerialized with a smile. "Something you find funny?" Hood asked not suspicious whatsoever. Enra floated around Hood oh so smug of his little silent joke. "See the thing I like about smoke, difficult to see what's going on around you, especially if someone wanted to set a trap."

If Enra could see his opponent's eyes they would be very big at the confession. "What!?" Hood shouted and Enra snapped his ghostly fingers. The smokescreen parted and revealed a water dome incasing Hood. Hood saw there were a number of kunai implanted in the ground and Itachi and Enra standing beside one another. "My new friend here has concocted an odd plan to deal with you so I decided to put something to the test." Enra said.

(Ten minutes ago)

Enra had used the Smoke Mirage justu when Itachi came out of the cell. Enra greeted him with a bow. "I see you're feeling better, well enough to fight perhaps?" He asked. Itachi rolled his shoulders, "What did you have in mind?" Enra put a hand out towards the smoke. "I can control the smoke body and form and can create whatever I so desire within its borders. But it's only a delaying tactic; it won't be long before he gets out. I have an idea but I will need some help."

He pulled out some kunai from the bag, special kunai that Itachi recognized. "I know how to use them but I need a small igniter and most of my tools are sealed away for more necessary battles, using any one of them would be overkill." Itachi looked into the smokescreen made by the man standing next to him. "What else do you have as far as ninja tools? Tell me everything." Itachi said. Enra looked inside the bag and gave Itachi the results. "Among the rest I have four scrolls, three flares, four land-mines, a vajra, ten feet of wire and a flash bomb."

Itachi didn't even think about it, he put out his hand out. "Give me what I ask." Itachi told Enra what he needed and the smoke demon smiled. "That's very nice Uchiha."

(Present time)

Enra pointed to the ground in front of Hood. He looked down and saw a landmine with a lit flare and a flash bomb tied to it. _One of the landmines from outside!_ Hood saw the heat of the flare was burning through the cords holding down the trigger. Before he could stop it, the flash bomb went off followed by the sound of the trigger releasing. A brilliant flash with a powerful explosion just seconds behind came next, shrouding Hood in light and fire.

"**Ninja Art: Flash Burn Trap.**" Enra muttered in the shining light held back only by a thin sheet of water. Once the fireworks stopped, He pulled out once of the kunai cancelling the force field. The remains were very much scorched save for the scythe which was lied underneath the burnt body. Enra collected the rest of the kunai, setting them back in the bag. "And that takes care of that. Do you want to keep the scythe as a spoil of the battle?" He asked Itachi and went to pick it up.

Itachi stopped Enra who looked at him oddly. "I wouldn't do that just yet if I were you. I am familiar with that weapon he carries; he isn't one to go down that easily." Enra was perplexed, still looking at the body. "You knew that man?" Enra asked safely assuming past tense. "Yes, and I still know him." Itachi replied. Enra didn't understand what Itachi meant until he saw the body start to move again.

"Ah son of a…I didn't think I would fall for something like that." Hood sat up and looked over his blades for damage. Sure enough, just as Enra said the wire was destroyed in the blast shortening his reach. Parts of his clothing were gone from the fire showing his bare charred flesh but his reaction wasn't normal to a person who just got nine-tenths of their body burned. From what wasn't burned Enra could see multiple stitching's on his body, some poorly done like he was a past science experiment. Enra racked his brain with possible solutions as to what the hell was going on.

"Care to give me an explanation, Uchiha? Is he human or something else?" He gave still watching Hood move around like he wasn't hit with a confined blast. "He's Hidan, a follower of Jashin. Although I heard that he was dealt with by the Leaf ninja." Itachi explained. Enra slammed a fist into his hand in enlightenment. "Ah Jashin, always was a sick bastard. I know of the followers and their gifts." He muttered under his breath. "These people I know how to deal with: either cut their heads off or completely annihilate the body. The first attack obviously wasn't strong enough to do it."

"That might be a problem there Devil," The newly announced Hidan yelled. He got to his feet and grabbed what remained of his cloak. "My god hasn't forsaken me yet, but even then I needed the help of another god while still serving undermine. I made a deal with one of their messengers to gain some power and support, and this was the result." He paused to remove the fabric, bringing to light why he was called Hood. He had no head.

Enra and Itachi were both shocked, "I'm genuinely surprised; I've never seen something like this before until today." Enra said. Hidan waved his hand around the space above the stump where his head should be. "Thanks to this little pardon, I no longer feel pain and have equally removed any chance of having my head removed by forceful means. I have become something more than human." _What I don't understand is how he has been talking this whole time. Never could shut up. _Itachi thought.

"How are you even alive?" Itachi questioned him. "It's nice to hear from you too Itachi. It's been a while hasn't it?" He threw the tattered cloak away. "I made a deal with a messenger of the Fallen God and obtained power from it. I had to agree to some rather ridiculous terms, but it worked out for the best. I can talk and move my body without having my head, an odd magic of sorts but a wonderful gift all the same. With the protection of Jashin and the Fallen God, I'm practically immortal. If we had more time I would love to tell you more, but sadly I have to deal with you first."

Enra's body went rigid at the mention of the Fallen God, his face was livid. "The Fallen One again…then there's no other way around it. You have to die." Itachi saw the look in Enra's eyes and they were not a good one. They went from a calm demeanor to complete rage, and Itachi wasn't the only one who noticed. Naruto, who of course had been listening in, was surprised at the sudden change in Enra's behavior. _I thought Shikamaru defeated him back then. How did he get here? And what's gotten into Enra? Now he's almost as mad as I was when he called me a demon._

"Itachi," Enra spoke, his words shook with anger under great restraint. "Whatever happens next, understand that this…thing must die, and I mean now. We can't afford for him to live any longer than he has. What happened to him forced him to choose this path of the unholy; living beyond death and pain but now he must be brought back down. Even if he was one of your old comrades, you have to forget that." Itachi didn't say anything, but it didn't matter because he didn't have much care for Hidan in the first place.

The headless Hidan laughed hysterically, "You plan to kill me? You can try it, go right ahead. I won't stop you." To prove it he dropped his scythe and his guard, leaving himself wide open. Enra's hand shot into the bag while he spoke with Naruto. "_Naruto, I need you to get angry again, as mad as possible. I've got an idea for how we can beat him. But I need you to get angry like before when you fought the jikininki." "I thought we agreed doing that would be a bad idea." _Naruto thought back. _"That was before I realized what we were facing."_ "Itachi, distract him." Enra ordered and the Uchiha prodigy complied in rushing him forming hand signs.

"**Fire Style: Fireball Justu!**" He called blowing a giant orb of flames at Hidan. Hidan did nothing and the great fireball engulfed him. Meanwhile Naruto and Enra were implicating their part in the plan. On the inside, Naruto was sitting in meditation, getting in a rage. The seals pulsed in tandem, their glow filling the mindscape prison. Chakra filled the area in gusts, building up to a vortex of power inside. His eyes were amethyst once again and the third eye reappeared, their glow beating in sync with the seals.

Enra popped up in his old form watching Naruto. _It must be hard to manage so much power and to keep it in control…but what if it wasn't him doing it? _He looked at the seal in the back with attentive eyes. _One experiment at a time but for now…_ On the outside Naruto's corporeal body vibrated with the raw intensity of the chakra he mustered up. This time the chakra came off in waves that could be felt by Itachi and Hidan, still on fire. "This is it. **Demon Sage Art: Chaos Oracle.**"

Static accumulated on his skin in small and growing gatherings. They grew stronger with the chakra waves, from small sparks dancing around to bolts jumping off in arcs. Itachi kept on breathing fire on Hidan for what good it did; the flames licked and bit him but he felt nothing. He walked through the constant barrage of fireballs like they weren't even there. "I can feel your strength Devil. I can feel it growing stronger. But I have yet to feel your real power, why don't you show me your potential?"

Enra shot a look of hatred at Hidan, "Those who boast the power of the Fallen God have fallen themselves. It will be a privilege to depose of that body you take pride in so much." Bolts of lightning were being generated from Naruto's body, but now instead of flying off, they were being focused in his left hand, inside the bag. "For someone so cursed to have taken such a poison just to live a half-life like you do, I must cleanse this world of what you are and make sure no one ever sees the likes of you again!"

He took his hand out of the bag and produced something glowing brightly with energy, too bright to see what it was. It crackled and snarled profoundly like a wild animal; small electrical sparks escaped it as though whatever it was could barely contain the lightning. "Uchiha, get out of the way or you'll get hit!" Itachi did as he was told and ran back behind Enra. _Good job Naruto._ Enra thought and aimed the light at Hidan. "Now feel this thunderous roar as a taste of the power to come and may the others know of the endless falling spiral that will be the cursed Fallen God!" He yelled and released all the power Naruto had created at Hidan…

**A/N: **Yup Hidan's back!

I thought about it for the longest time, technically Hidan didn't die, just got buried in the Naru clans' forest so seemed like a good candidate. I also did say that I would be using three and only three of their group and now you have met the third.

More fighting, can't get enough of the blood and gore and a little food for thought on how Hidan ain't got no head although Itachi's nightmare might be a little foreshadowing (cookie to anyone who gets what it means). If I'm forgetting anything else, feel free to point it out. R&R!


	24. The Wind Whispers with Fate's Word

**A/N: **And once again welcome back ladies and gentlemen to another chapter of Demon Love. Last round I showed that Hidan was alive and kicking using a loophole, but without a head. While many of you are wondering wtf and how, I will be explaining that shortly. And now we shall see what the end result of the fight will be…

The Wind Whispers with Fate's Word

We return to where we left off as Enra was in a state of great rage and ready to release the power Naruto gathered unto Hidan. The light coming from Enra's shaking grasp shone like the sun, an almost blinding powerful energy barely contained by mortal flesh. If Hidan had a face, it would be one of thrill facing such an attack and relishing in the thought of not feeling the pain it would not doubt cause. "Now feel this thunderous roar as a taste of the power to come and may the others know of the endless falling spiral that will be the cursed Fallen God!" Enra roared and released the power.

In the blink of an eye an immense thunderbolt shot out from the center of the light with a monstrous roar and struck Hidan square in the chest. The effect was fantastic: Hidan was thrown back from the impact of the attack, the powerful current surging through his body and brilliantly lighting up his body. The lightning streamed across the distance taking Hidan with it and piercing the wall on the far side, slamming the headless man's body into it as it did and finally passed through him.

With that impressive display done, the energy that was stored up was gone and the light along with it. At what was the source of the light, in Enra's now bloody and burned hand he held the vajra, still discharging electrical energy. Itachi stood at the sidelines in mutual awe at what just went down. Enra was exhausted and fell to his knees, all of his energy was spent trying to fine-tune and control all the lightning.

Enra eyed the still body of his opponent, "Uchiha, do you suppose that will keep him down? I don't want to waste any more time fighting and using up chakra on an enemy that can't feel pain." Cora and Mata stepped out of hiding once the sounds of battle had ceased. Itachi inched slowly towards Hidan, wondering the same thing. "It's hard to say. Back when he was a part of our group he worshiped only one god, and he was immortal because of it, thus why he can live without a head. However I've never seen his body move independently without it before."

Itachi stopped at the smoldering body and from its unmoving form he saw something odd in the area where his head should be. Static clung to parts of Hidan's flesh which made sense given the hit he took, as well as outlining a hidden shape above the stump. Though there was no _real_ head, there was one in chakra form made distinct by the static. _What kind of justu can do this?_ Itachi thought curiously.

The chakra head moved and addressed its former comrade, "Hey Itachi, like my new look? I told them a little off the top but I made it work." He laughed at his poor joke; Itachi's reaction was to back away from him. "Damn it, I wasn't sure if he would disintegrate but I had thought it would have done something." Naruto was in an uproar in his thoughts, _"Are you kidding me!? I put a ton of chakra into that hit and nothing happened?"_

Enra fell back on his rear and dropped the vajra back in the bag. "I thought as much. Something didn't feel right from the first second I laid eyes on him. I had half a dozen theories on what your friend here could be if not human, my demonology has more bulk in it than you'd believe. I needed to test his physiology first with some classical hand-to-hand combat, then his senses by surrounding him in smoke. My results conclude that even headless, he is still human."

"Was the next step zapping him with rage-fueled lightning? If it was it appeared to have worked, you managed to temporarily paralyze him," Itachi paid close attention to parts of Hidan's body twitching at odd random intervals. "It looks as though you might have shorted out his nervous system with that last blast, though how I still can't say." He reported. Enra was relieved, "Is that so? That's quite fortunate." _In more ways than one as well, that last test has given me the results I needed. I'll tell the boy later._ He smiled in his thoughts.

Enra chuckled at himself. "I won't lie, that wasn't entirely part of the plan. For personal reasons, I…lost my temper, but that outrage helped me find out something very useful." Itachi looked at Enra curiously but let it pass as something else caught his attention: a breeze that should not have been blowing. A gentle breeze wafted around the Uchiha's face making his hair fall over his eyes and that's when he noticed it.

The slow wind was building up and blowing its way around the walls and with it carried a voice, so quiet Itachi had to strain his ears to hear it. "Is…you…ther? Ca…ou…el…e? Any…ple…." The ghostly words fluttered with the air, Itachi looked around in the light and now that his mind was clear again he thought out a careful plan.

"Enra, is that creature of yours well?" Enra looked at him from the floor. "The feline? He should be fine. Why?" "He's a bakeneko and there's something wrong with this picture. I need to use his abilities." Mata overheard and presented himself with Cora shortly after with severe caution. "What do you need boy?" He asked. The rogue ninja pointed to the anomaly that was Hidan, "I need you to sniff out anything you can regarding what he is and I need you to do the same for all the cells in the vicinity for anyone inside."

The look on Mata's face changed from suspicion to his natural curiosity. While he didn't argue the point of checking _every_ cell would be a complete waste of time, he did so without a word. He inspected the immobile man on the ground with his nostrils and was immediately repulsed by the scent he picked up. "Ugh, this one's stench reeks of more than two kinds of filth." He groaned in revolt.

Itachi put a hand to his forehead in annoyance, "I would imagine as such, I meant does he smell like a human or something else?" He stressed. Mata vigorously shook his head as though to free himself from the smell. "Yes, there is that. He has more than one ungodly fragrance to him as well. Whatever gods he was talking about before, he has been touched by something alright and he's being protected by it." He stopped then; something else had gotten his attention. His eyes went glassy and he snuffled at the air with increased activity.

He went in strange movements, zigzagging and the like, even Enra got to his feet to see what the odd fur ball was doing. "There is something else here. Something fierce is hiding its presence." He breathed. With his eyes looking the way they did, Itachi would have thought Mata was unconscious; he followed Mata's patterns, waved his hand in front of the cat's face for a reaction. "I've never seen a bakeneko do this…Enra you said you had more bulk on the demon topic. Would you care to enlighten me on some details?" Itachi requested.

Enra grabbed the scythe he put aside after he used the Smoke Mirage justu and went to see what the ninja was talking about and mirrored Mata was he walked about following the smell. He grabbed the cat by the back of his neck and hoisted him to eye level. With no reaction, he gave the weapon to Itachi to hold and proceeded to widen one of the cat's eye lids and stared into the glazed globe.

"Bakeneko have the skill to discriminate scents of beings that have left their mark. On certain occasions when the scent is very strong they become, let's say consumed by it. They work completely on scent alone and can temporarily lose focus in their eyes, almost like losing sight. This is one of those cases."

He set Mata back down and he went back to the scent like nothing had happened. Enra thought this amusing and, with two fingers, held on to his tail. Unaware of this, Mata walked in place not going anywhere. This made the smoke demon laugh while Itachi just stared at him. In time Enra yielded and released him, tossing his hands up in a playful manner and taking back the scythe.

The two tailed the cat for the greater side of fifteen minutes, strolling around the halls with eyes only for Mata. As they went along with it Itachi could better hear the faint words on the wind getting louder ever so slightly. They went beyond the illumination of the blue fireballs so Enra used his Flesh Wick justu to light the rest of the way until finally Mata stopped his tracks in front of a normal cell door. "It's coming from behind this door, that strong smell." The two men looked at each other and advanced to the door to peer inside.

The light was casted over two forms in casual prisoner's drab garments. One was a fairly old man, older looking than Ikazuchi from floor eight and much thinner as well. He bore a striking resemblance to the said elder, save for the color of his hair and its length, which was much more silvery and longer. The second was another male, this one still in his youth, possibly in his mid-twenties. His hair was a deep shade of red, short and spiky like a hedgehog, it reminded Naruto of the color of Kushina's hair. Enra remembered that since the fall of the Land of Whirlpools, seeing a redhead was quite a rare occurrence.

Even with the light burning from Enra's finger they couldn't see their faces well enough so he upped the pressure to increase the heat of the flame. Itachi could crane an ear for the words slipping in and onto the wind that shouldn't be and they came in clearer now than before. "Is that you brother? Can you help me? Anyone please…" The sounds they carried had a sense of woe in them; one Itachi felt he could somehow sympathize with.

"So you can hear this old fart huh?" The redhead spoke up first; his demeanor harsh and his voice cold. Enra repositioned his hand to better brighten the cell. Redhead's face was more marked up than Enra's was; multiple deep scars ran all over its surface, turning it into a book of past battles and at the moment it was sour. "I swear by my name, this guy just mumbles about crap that slides off the tip of his tongue. I'm amazed anyone can hear it other than me." His voice was smooth but the crude words that came out didn't match up.

"Who are you, and what are you in here for?" Enra asked with quiet respect and Redhead glared at him. "If you try asking that while using that manner of nature to speak to me, I'll be a little insulted. Besides," He paused to get a good look at Enra, eyes stopping just so on the weapon he carried. "Isn't impolite to ask someone their name without first giving theirs?" Enra stared on at the jailed man who had such distaste for him only moments after seeing him. Enra noticed that Redhead's eyes were the same aureate color as Cora's, in fact now that Enra saw his whole face Redhead closely resembled Cora in such a way they could almost be related.

Enra put the weapon aside and motioned with his other hand to present them, "My name is Enra, and this is Itachi Uchiha. And who, pray tell are you two fine gentlemen?" Redhead's glare continued to burn into Enra but he reluctantly threw a thumb at the old timer. "Far as I can tell his name's Futen. Don't bother asking him why he's in here, he just keeps mumbling about some guy who's stuck in this place too."

Futen made no move indicating he heard his introduction and he went on muttering under his breath. Up close they saw Futen was in desperate need of a shave and a haircut that his bangs partially covered his face. "And the charming man you see before you is named Umeni, the unofficial King of the Cells here in the Nine Hells." Umeni finished bringing two fingers to his forehead and tipping an imaginary hat.

Silence followed Umeni's poor joke and the redhead frowned, dropping his hand. "I'm here for a number of reasons: kidnapping, joyriding, theft." He grinned slightly at theft. "I've done other noteworthy things not worth mentioning. But one day I got sloppy because of some kid and thus, here I am."

Naruto found this comment to be quite funny as his laughter bounced off the walls of his mind. _"He's in here because of a slip-up caused by some brat?"_ Enra flinched at the volume and he rubbed his head to ease the sudden shock of pain. A flicker of the eyes and followed silence from the two inmates were enough to Itachi that something wasn't right; Futen had gone quiet and Umeni went back to giving the icy stare, but only at Enra.

"_Anything can happen, one slip-up is all it takes. No doubt it's happened to you on several occasions."_ Enra replied. The room temperature suddenly felt like it dropped twenty degrees, Itachi and Enra both grew tense from the change in the air. Umeni's voice changed from its silky nature to an even more vicious tone. "Do you hear that Futen? A bothersome fly buzzing in the grandness of the canyon, and he doesn't even know what's next." Futen simply bobbed his head slowly.

Umeni stood up and pressed his face against the bars of the opening closest to Enra. He whispered, too quiet for Itachi to hear, "Do you want to introduce us to the_ other _voice inside your head?" Naruto shut his jaw closed and Enra's eyes widened out of pure surprise of the question, surely this man couldn't tell that he was a demon possessing a human. Yet the tell-tale glare Enra received clearly indicated otherwise.

A quick sideways glance to Itachi and Enra leaned closer, "What on earth are you talking about? You make it sound as though I'm crazy, hearing another's voice in my head. Are you sure they didn't put you in here for another reason?" He joked. Umeni leered and a venomous smile spread across his face. "Say what you will, you might be able to hide that. But there's nothing in this world that can hide the _stench_ of the Hell-born. I'm interested to learn how that came to be. After all I'm not the only special one in here."

Itachi was curious now about what it was they were whispering about but Futen had his attention at the moment. Futen was playing with some rocks, twirling them around in his hands and rolling them around on his fingers. He would drop one, then pick it up and resume rolling it around. He stopped moving his hands and turned his head, his filthy and long bangs covered his eyes.

He tossed one in the air and caught it in the other hand and then tossed it back. He repeated this with a second, and then a third and a fourth until he was juggling. At the skill and timing he moved his hands and the way the old man's hair was Itachi could have sworn he was doing without sight but he knew this was false. Enra had stopped listening to Umeni to watch and after several seconds of trying to reestablish talking, so did Umeni.

Futen then began to sing a tune in time with his juggling, a slow cheerful melody that the three didn't know. _"Oh when the wind blows, the trees they bend…the words of tomorrow, they never end. The fog of our lies, they block our way…the stars in the skies, they begin to fade."_ He paused to catch his breath and that's when things got interesting. Futen exhaled on the stones he threw in the air and stopped moving his hands yet the stones were still airborne, following the same pattern like they were being handled by invisible hands.

"_Though blood and bones, they both turn to ash…dreams of chosen will forever last. The ebb and flow of time moves on…all seen by one whose will is strong. Oh he who is cursed, the blessed child…his hearts are cold, his thoughts are wild. For he who sees the grand design…through great destruction the sun will shine."_ He switched over to humming the rest and clapped with the song.

"A daft one he is, but as you can plainly see special just like I am. There are a lot of us down here, most of them with tricks like ours." Umeni praised. "I think he's got something more hidden away in that head but I doubt it would be worth finding with that senile old mind of his." Umeni grabbed Enra by the hair and pulled him closer in. "But enough of that, you still haven't told me your story. What are you doing out of that pit you call a home and what do you want here?"

Enra grunted in pain but didn't resist, "If you could lighten up some I would gladly tell you what I can, but alas the pain is clouding my thoughts." Against his wishes, Umeni pulled harder. "No, I think I'll keep you like this. You could slip away from my reach if I did as you say, and seeing where we are wouldn't you follow the same logic if our roles were reversed?" He said.

To Enra, it was sound. In the many years he had watched many people through the fires of the world; the joys and sorrows, loves and betrayals. Humans were so predicable in the way they worked, thought, and acted and from this knowledge he learned how to steel himself from people when they weren't agreeable and how to turn the tide in his favor when caught certain predicaments and he held an ace.

A chuckle escaped from Enra's mouth, "If I were you I would have let go, now seeing as I am still me I will give you one warning." Enra twisted so their eyes could meet. "Release me now or you will get the SHOCK of your life." He threatened, wording it so another would get the hint. The snake-like grin got bigger on Umeni. "Oh? Now I'm ever so curious as to what you indeed to do." He replied tightening his grip on the silvery white length.

Enra winced but he felt something other pain to his good fortune. "Remember, you were warned." Black flashed violent purple and a quick current surged over Enra's skin and made contact with Umeni's hand. He screamed and jerked back his arm, freeing Enra and allowing him to move beyond Umeni's reach. Umeni inspected his hand and shook it trying to numb the pain of the jolt he experienced.

"How the hell did you do that?" Umeni demanded. "Everyone in here is some type of hazard to the world. Mine is just different from the lot that's here." Enra answered cryptically. The redhead could do nothing but glare angrily at the smoke demon who was nursing his hair. "You know, that may need to be taken care of if it gets in the way like that." Itachi pointed out. Enra ran his hands through the many long strains and let them fall to his back. "Maybe, but I've had long hair for the most part of my life so I know how to tend to it from time to time."

Umeni sat back down but the sudden pitter-patter sound of rocks hitting the ground made him jump, still a little jumpy from the lightning. The rocks previously floating in the air had fallen to the ground and Futen had his hands wrapped around his head, shivering. "Hey old man, what's your problem?" Umeni was still aggravated from the lightning. "That sound. I would know that sound from anywhere, the crackle of it as it enters the atmosphere."

Then faster than expected from an old man, he was at the door hands on the bars facing straight at Enra, one arm reaching out through the viewing hole. "I can feel the change and there's only one person I know who can do that so quickly," With his right, he pushed aside the bangs to show Enra his eyes, which were a milky white over a faded green. "I know I can't see any more but I can still tell it's you, Brother! Why have you not greeted me properly? I hear them you know, I hear the screams of the people stuck down here just like us. I've heard them for so long now I fear that I cannot hear my inner voice anymore."

Itachi backed away from the raving man. _He really is blind, then how was he able to do what he did I wonder? _"Do you know this man? He seems to know you." Enra held his hands up in defense. "I've never seen this man before," Then he thought back to the only other time he heard the word "brother" being used. With this in mind, Enra approached Futen and carefully placed his hand in Futen's shaking grasp. "Please listen, I'm not who you think I am but I may have met your brother in the lower levels. By any chance would he be a man named Ikazuchi?"

Futen's face changed from desperation to relief hearing Enra's words, they stilled the old man's shaking hand. They brought a slow smile to his wrinkled face, one filled with joy and peace. Sadly it was short-lived, thanks to Umeni interrupting with cruel laughter. Enra watched the redhead as he laughed in the corner. "So the old timer has a brother, and you say you've met with this man? Please tell me that he's as delirious as this bird here."

Both Enra and Naruto had to think about that one for a moment, maybe not so much delirious as he was mad. With this new information, they could agree on the brother part of Ikazuchi's story had some truth to it. With his other hand Enra removed the vajra from the bag, moving his hand and putting it in Futen's. "I received this from your brother as proof. I made a deal with him to get you both out if his story was true and so far everything has checked out."

Enra released his grip and Futen rubbed it gently, trying to get the feel of it. "This can't be…this really did belong to my brother. You must be telling the truth, in his lifetime this has never left my brother's possession." He caressed it and held it close like it was going to disappear. The look on his face was of peace, his blind eyes welling up with tears of joy. "Thank you, truly. I haven't felt this way in a very long time, not since my brother and I were tossed in here. So having felt this in my hands, it tells me that my brother is still alive and well." He confessed. At this point not even Umeni's pokes and prods affected him.

At first Enra had thought Futen wouldn't surrender the item. He would have understood if that were the case, a brother's love is a brother's love after all. But surprisingly, and with difficulty, Futen handed it back. Enra's face asked why but Futen pushed for him to take it. "I am to understand that my brother gave you this upon the agreement correct? My brother is an honorable man and if he gave you this, he sees something in you and though I may be blind I see more than most."

Enra went to take it, the moment his fingers touched Futen's skin he grabbed Enra's hand with the other, tightly. He pulled him closer to whisper the words that will never leave the minds of the shinobi and the demon. "Umeni may be able to hear you, but my eyes and ears are better. I see two people who don't know of the horrors that go on in here and there are more. Three souls will pass on from this world and there will be nothing you can do to prevent this, but you mustn't let your rage and misery control and consume you in the days to come else you, _boy,_ will become what you fear most."

Inside the mindscape, Naruto hadn't moved from his spot in front of the empty cage, listening to Futen's words. Here he had to believe that Futen knew something about him being possessed by Enra but he didn't understand what Futen was talking about with the passing of three souls or rage and misery, maybe just more of his nothings like the song from earlier.

What Naruto feared most…after the new various experiences he's had in the time since he had that cursed seal placed on Yunika's chakra seal he wasn't afraid of much, except maybe for the incident with the ayakashi. He was mostly shocked and amazed at the new kind of world he was introduced to, in no small thanks to that satanic redhead.

Now that his thoughts had passed to her, he wondered what had happened to her and where she had gone. Yunika's disappearance didn't make any sense in the matter, how and by what means did she get free? When Naruto thought about it his mind nagged at him again like before when he was talking to Enra on the beach. It felt like an itch he couldn't scratch, something that kept on the more he thought about why. He decided to let it go for now and focused on the next issue.

That said, Mata, now back to normal, had been listening in on the conversation when something else had gotten his eye where Cora was found playing, actually playing with Hidan's body. Cora picked up one of his arms and let it drop back down, eye-balling the man who was trying to kill her not twenty minutes ago. The outline of his head followed her every move, his unseen eyes no doubt doing the same.

"If you want to finish me off girl, now would be a good time to try it. You won't get another chance." He offered and laughed. Cora glared with great distain at him and laughed harder. "You should be careful, I'm something of an immortal," Unknown to the girl, Hidan had been trying to move his body after the shock of the attack had settled. He made his hand twitch and closed it slowly, getting the feeling and the sense to return.

"You never know what we can do!" He exclaimed and grabbed her by the hands. Taken by surprise, Cora struggled to get free while Hidan tried to get up. Mata saw this and called out to her, gaining the eyes attention of the others. Right then, Naruto could feel Enra's anger flare up again like before with even more fire this time. "This is just what I needed, why can't you just stay down!?" He shouted, his temper causing the fire on his fingers to grow into a large stream.

Hidan got to his feet, still holding on to an active Cora. She bit him and finding out that did nothing, let go and spat to get rid of the taste of charred flesh. Hidan shrugged, "You just can't get rid of me that easily. Once I've dealt with her you can be sure I'll tend to you next." He swung Cora and slammed her against the wall, pushing her higher until her feet were just barely hovering over the ground. "After all, I have all the time in the world, seeing as no man on this planet can kill me."

Futen was still holding on to Enra's hand when saw it: Enra's shadow cast by the flame in still form had begun to shift and change and grow with his rage. "You think that just because you can't be killed you reign over every other soul? Yet you act under another's orders to clean house and make room for new arrivals? It's your kind that I despise the most."

To Naruto the inside of the mindscape was growing darker, the shadows bulged and swelled and enveloped the cage. Naruto was freaking out watching as they surrounded him. "Enra what are you doing?" He expected to see him in some physical form but instead he heard his voice coming from everywhere at once. _"I'm sorry Naruto, but I have to do something I wished I didn't. Please don't resist or this real become extremely painful."_

The darkness covered the both seals, almost killing the glow they gave off and filled the veins inside the walls, spreading like a virus. The cell shook like something was tearing at the walls from the outside. It filled the room like water flooding the space. They were thick, and moving became difficult as the level grew higher. First to his knees, then his waist, soon it was all the way up to his neck. "Just tell me what you are doing!?" Naruto shouted.

Silence first, and then regret. _"I'm going to take over your body and mind completely. Temporarily of course, but this man is right; no man can kill him as previously seen with the vajra. So I'm going to show him the true power of a demon of my caliber but to do that I need to do this. The sensation won't be that different from when you merge with Kyuubi but this will feel much more powerful."_

As the liquid darkness was about to swallow Naruto up, two final words were uttered before he was totally absorbed: _I'm sorry._

In the same instant in the real world, Enra's flame went out and Futen felt his hand grow cold. In fright, he let go and rushed back to the other side of the cell. Umeni stared at him wondering what got into him then he looked to see the source of his fear.

Enra's white hair was set aflame with black fire and red tips and it grew long, the end nearly touching the floor and casting a ghastly light. The duster gained a misty incorporeal appearance like it was truly made of smoke. His eyes also changed, but not to the amethyst: they were completely black, with a white colored S-shaped iris. His scars appeared on Naruto's body as if they were his own. If that wasn't enough the umbra flame revealed his changing shadow had grown to an immense size.

It had changed so drastically: it had four arms each with claws, the base of it was wavy, shoulders were bony and shot up like spikes, and the head was something even worse with the same eyes. It was beastly, monstrous, and inhuman. It was frightening, something that radiated death to all. Enra pointed a finger at Hidan and a small black flame burst to life on the tip. When he spoke his voice was amplified, powerful and reverberant.

"**Fear me earth land creature, for I am no man. I am Enra, demon of fire, smoke and darkness, bearer of the scars of my brothers and have lived for over millennia. You, who speak of immortality, know not the hardships of living for over a thousand years.**" He closed his hand and the flame consumed his fist, shaking with fury. "**Being unable to die, living forever, what does a child know of such things? How can you be so sure that you can't die, can't burn away to ash like the rest of your kind?**"

Itachi, Futen, Umeni, Mata and Cora were struck with awe at Enra's anger towards Hidan who seemed slightly impressed at the feat the smoke demon displayed. He dropped Cora and went to grab his scythe. Enra dropped his glowing fist and picked up his weapon. "So you _are_ one of the Hell-born. I knew it." Umeni said to no one in particular. Itachi stared in dismay, all of the pieces clicking together at once. He mentally hit himself for not seeing it earlier; he had been off his game since he was captured.

Hidan was ready, weapon in hand. "And before you even looked like a devil, now that I know you are one…makes things all the more fun for me. Come at me then! Let's see if you really can kill me Enra!" Enra took the same stance from before when he first brought it out. _I am truly sorry Naruto, but if you were aware right now you would try to stop what I plan on doing. I can't have that. This corruption must cease to exist._

"One way other another, one of us will die here!" Hidan declared and rushed forward. "**Uchiha, I want you to stay out of this. Protect Mata and Cora at all costs!**" Enra instructed and mirrored Hidan. With great speed they closed the gap, Hidan attacking from above and Enra from below. They connected, Hidan's force driving Enra into the ground but Enra had a longer weapon and the momentum it carried and used it well, sending Hidan flying high.

Enra leaped after him just as Hidan had corrected himself mid-flight. Before he could react Enra was above him. Too late to do anything but block his next attack, Hidan brought up the scythe as Enra swung his using the reverse end to send the headless man crashing to the ground, cracking it upon impact. Hidan groaned from the landing. _He's gotten stronger, what's gotten into this guy?_

Enra's landing was just as rough, as he landed on top of Hidan strategically doing so Enra stood over him when he hit ground. Hidan tried again from his right and was stopped by Enra's left hand grabbing one of the blades. "**I thought I told you already,**" Enra said pushing the scythe down into the ground by its handle, hand still on the blade. His eyes were filled with rage and hate for the creature lying in the ground.

"**I will kill you, and I will make it will hurt. I will end you in the most painful way I on capable off and trust me when I say I can be quite creative.**" He stated like it was a fact of life, his demonic shadow looming over them both enforcing his threat. Hidan laughed the hardest yet, "Oh, now I'm excited. Two supposed immortals, demons in nature, fighting to the death! Demon Enra, Devil of the Hell Gate, I demand you to show me everything you've got!"

**A/N:** Finally there! Sorry it took longer than usual, I was dealing with important things what with winter coming and settling in.

Next chapter won't take as long hopefully but I make no promises. I do promise that this next one will be good. Anyway, yea dark yet divine protection would be the reason why Hidan isn't dust particles by now. The two elderly brothers have been revealed, one a little off and the other has a screw loose (bet you can't tell which one lol) and now we have a man who looks like he might have ties with Cora, who's also a bit of a dick.

Icing on the cake, Hidan is back in the game and Enra is complete pissed! The two will go at it once more, one last time to see who the true immortal is! *strikes a warrior's pose* Who will win? Find out next chapter! R&R


	25. Deus Ex Machina

**A/N:** Welcome back one and all (hopefully more than one ha-ha) to another chapter! This is where things get really good as we begin to get to the heart of why all this is happening, and I finally give one such player their long awaited stage debut. Because of the necessity of this chapter it will be twice as long. Let's get it on!

Deus Ex Machina

The sounds of frenzied muttering in a ten-by-ten foot room filled the air; a set of curious eyes peering through thin steel bars, watching and waiting. Stoic sense was turned to fascination and two others, young and old, had their sights fixed on the battle at present. In the gloom of the dark, the only source of light telling anything of the fight were sparks coming from the clashing blows of steel and the few glimpses of red streaks clawing through the black as the two death bearers' blades bit at each other.

Steel ground against steel in this glorious battle for blood. Wrath and hatred against arrogance and zeal, testaments of one another's will; their desire to see the other's end. To reap or to be reaped, a split second move was all it would take to decide the truth, and they were testing the limits of this truth.

Enra and Hidan were going blow for blow in bouts of strength, each strike shaking their hands in attempts to either knock the other's weapon away or break it. In terms of power and technique, Enra was currently leading, pushing Hidan against the wall with his scythe in one hand. Parts of his body were cut up and bleeding from mistakes—feeling pain wasn't much of an advantage at times when you can't tell when you've been hit.

Hidan struggled to remove the pressure by using his scythe as leverage. Enra pushed harder while Hidan tried to lock blades and twisted it off his chest, moving to the side just as Enra thrust and it bounced off the cold metal on the wall. He kept on moving, trying to keep his distance and give himself time to think.

"**What could possibly be the matter, Hidan?**" Enra taunted him. He scraped the blade down the side of the wall slowly; the burning tail of his hair popping sparks as it trailed behind. "**Could it be that you vastly underestimated the difficulty of handling a real demon? Praying to your dark gods won't help you here!**" He screamed and charged, the duster leaving a trail of smoke behind him.

Hidan went to block for that was all he could do, the way Enra moved his weapon like it was a part of him, would have frightened a mortal man. But to Hidan it was just a show that he played a role in. Small things like fire and lightning he could take but something like a blade would be a problem, and Enra knew that Hidan would still need his body in full functioning order so he couldn't allow Enra's scythe to land a hit.

Enra brought the scythe down using the reverse side again and Hidan blocked it again, the weight of it making him buckle. The smoke left behind started to move on its own; its serpentine movements grabbed Hidan's attention. The smoke flew at the two, buffeting them like great storm winds, yet when Hidan tried waving the streaming smoke away he felt solidity.

Enra directed his smoke snake to coil around his opponent's body; arms, legs, torso all rendered useless. He used this to throw Hidan against the wall; his scythe dropping to the floor and clattered onto the stone. "How are you doing this? Smoke can't be made tangible." Hidan screamed in his growing rage, pulling and tearing at his shifting bindings.

Enra glowered at his prisoner, the whites of his irises shining menacingly. His piercing gaze burned fear and certainty of death by any means, hotter than the dark fire that made up his hair. "**For a man who can see without the need for a head, you do not see much. This smoke is not truly smoke for it is part of the duster I wear. My power has always been such that I can make into smoke, anything of mine, on mine, whereas yours is simply to kill and take the years of the innocent that could have been.**"

Hidan's reply was in the form of a rude hand gesture, causing him to be pushed deeper into the wall. Trying to release himself still, he grasped at the smoke to pull it off of his body. Enra would have laughed at the effort if he wasn't in such a rage. "**You have no elegance in the way you fight, or eloquence on your tongue. To me, you are but a vulgar child in the midst of battle, playing with a blade what's edge has been dulled. Your actions are harsh and you kill with such brutality, a follower of Jashin would not be so…primitive with their rituals.**"

Hidan stopped briefly in his endeavor, "It is true that since I lost my head the rituals had to be done another way, but when the end justifies the means a little extra blood is worth the risk. And speaking of blood," His mood had changed as he moved to try something very helpful in his situation…

(After Enra's change)

Hidan had his back to the ground and Enra, his hand clasping the blade. Enra raked the ground around Hidan and he leaned out of the way three times before he wrapped his legs around Enra's middle and threw him to the ground, knocking the wind out of him in the process. Taken by surprise, Hidan pressed on weapon in hand.

Enra rolled backwards guard up and ready. He turned the weapon in his hands, thrusting the top forward to halt Hidan's advance, hitting him in the stomach and stopping him cold. Hidan groaned from the hit but he took the full force of the attack. Hidan grasped the snath and pulled hard, bringing both it and Enra up and over his head and crashing back down.

Once, twice, and thrice Enra struck the stone before he had enough of the comic theme that was going on. On the fourth harsh landing, Enra vaporized into his ideal element, letting the scythe hit the floor with nothing. A black fog covered the ground, veiling any and all traces of Enra's next move.

While it was quiet, Itachi had gotten hold of Cora and Mata stayed close to his side. He threw her over his shoulder but Cora was against Itachi carrying her; she pounded her fists against his back. Ignoring the constant little beatings, he ran back to the door of the two men's cell. _This is going to be more trouble than it's worth. I can't do much of anything yet…_ He reached up to his eyes, pondering if he should use his Sharingan.

Mata saw he was having trouble recovering his strength. "Maybe you should ask for assistance? Or have you forgotten your deal with my mistress?" He reminded the young prodigy. Itachi swatted at the cat, "I have not forgotten! But what help could she send, from her current position? Even your fireballs won't do anything here!"

Mata thought about it, though a little insulted, an idea came to mind. "No," He raised an eyebrow as his eyes sparked with a single thought. He leaned to the side to look at Itachi's back, at the redhead almost hanging from his back. "But I know of something that might."

Back at the fight, Hidan stood still with two death-bringers in his hands, more cautious now than when he was caught in the smoke screen from before. "What are you waiting for Devil? You won't kill me by just disappearing." He taunted.

A smoke column rose from the ground and formed into a wisp-like version of Enra, eyes and all. "**That's just it then, isn't it? How should I do it? Shall I do away with you using my power?**" Another wisp, this time of his shadow emerged from the ground. It loomed over them both, intimidating and fierce.

Once Enra had stopped raging, he regained sense of mind; his fury still bubbling under the surface, like a beast on a leash waiting to be set free. In his moment of pausing he looked back into the mindscape and saw it remained in shadowy waters.

He could feel the power of the seals was still intact but for all the good that did, the strain his power put on them was great. Too great in fact, that Enra couldn't use his own power to its extent even with a full possession, without either hurting the boy or breaking open the seals which held back such tremendous power. Without it the only thing he could do was—what had the humans called it?—parlor tricks.

He felt something was amiss; he didn't sense the boy, couldn't sense him. He knew Naruto was somewhere in the recesses of the cage, floating in the darkness of Enra's essence consuming the whole of the boy's mind. He dug in the thickness to be thorough, finally coming across Naruto's inner body. Naruto was back in his human form, and he wasn't moving. Something was wrong.

But something told him not to worry, that the boy wasn't a concern right now. His thoughts changed from worry and back into rage as he returned to reality, pondering the ways he would make Hidan pay the debt of nature.

"**Smoke…fire…shadow…which one to choose?**" Tendrils swirled up from the dark mist, long and thin. They surrounded the two bodies, cloud-like serpents taking heed, acting with minds of their own, watching yet blind. A ring of black flames sprang up from the ground, encircling them. Enra's shadow flexed its arms.

"**Or maybe,**" He snapped his fingers and hazy impersonations of the two life-takers manifested in his hands. "**Maybe I should just kill you with the very things you hold? Lop off one joint after another, slowly waiting for the blood to flow from your corpse-to-be. Then I'll move on to the next one, and the next. Until what's left couldn't even be used in a meat puzzle.**"

His threat rang hollow to Hidan; he literally had both concerns in his hands. Fire did nothing to him, and smoke was nothing more than the aftermath of fire's hunger. He knew these things, and still he saw this…creature standing in front of him, preaching his death.

As he weighed his choices Hidan saw something dripping off his own blade, a liquid he was quite familiar with. _Blood…must have been from when the hot-head grabbed it earlier. _Taking caution, he tried drifting any attention from the weapons. "And how can you, when I have them both? I don't doubt that you have other weapons that could do the job just as well, but I am curious," He raised the hand holding Enra's scythe. "Tell me: why this one specifically?"

"**Simple**." Enra snapped his fingers. Figures rose from the ground taking shapes of people in what appeared to be farmer's outfits, all of them using scythes. "**History tells us of times when farmers used these tools to harvest wheat in their fields before it became a weapon used in combat to take lives.**" The smoke people moved as he spoke, like he was narrating a play.

"**There's an old wives tale about how it was revealed to the world when the gods of death had begun using these to take the lives of humans. It involved a fox, some bad farmers, a hermit, and a very angry young boy taking up one such tool. I'll spare you the details, but in the end the farmers end up dead and the boy exiled from his home. No one knew what happened to the fox at the end.**"

Both the people and the weapons fell back into the smoke, returned to nothing. "**By bloody history, using a scythe to take your life would be most fitting in your circumstance, the irony I see here being you take life from death to survive and upon your death I will awaken you to true immortal life. This takes us back to the question at hand,**" He collapsed into the floor and jumped back up in front of Hidan, fighting back the urge to laugh when he tried to look him in the face and forgot Hidan didn't have a real one.

He waved his hands with flare through the space where Hidan's head should have been. "**How to wake you from this nightmare you have become.**" Hidan laughed and sliced through the smoke Enra, tearing it to pieces. "Nightmare? And to what nightmare are you referring?" He asked the empty air. The silence gave him nothing as the smoke rolled over the ground in a spiral.

It moved faster and faster inward, turning over and upwards. Rushing up and in a single motion, covered Hidan in a reverse tornado. The sudden force of its rising blew Hidan to the ceiling, knocking both the scythes and the wind out of him. The smoke dispersed over the ceiling letting Hidan drop to the ground. Still in the air, Enra reformed the upper half of his body to grab his scythe and float down while Hidan hit it hard.

As soon as he landed, Hidan went for his weapon and was stopped by a blade plunged in front of it. Enra stood over him in all his rage and glory. "**On your feet.**" He commanded. Hidan stood up slowly, hands up in cliché. He removed the blade and flipping it over he used the edge to hook the smaller one and tossed it. "What is this? You want to end this the old-fashioned way?" Hidan asked catching it.

Enra answered, "**Oh it will end, though it may not be old-fashioned. I want to draw this out for as long as possible, to see how "eternal" your endurance is. How else am I to have my fun?**" Hidan hmmed and tightened his grip. "If that's how it is, so be it." They charged at each other once more and traded steel with greater fervor, beginning a whole new battle of immortals.

(Present time)

"The whole time while I was getting injured, I was working on a way I could prepare the ritual without you catching wind of it. A rush job but it will work all the same." Enra saw the wall Hidan was pinned against was covered in blood. No, not covered, _designed_. The blood was shaped into the Jashin symbol, with Hidan at the center. _He used his blood during the struggles from the cuts I made on his body. I have to give him credit for turning this around_.

Enra was unmoved. "**If I understand your rituals correctly, you may have it prepared but you're still missing one key ingredient…**" He reached down and picked up Hidan's weapon. He inspected the blades and wiped off the blood he found. "**…which you seemed to have covered if only for a short while. I had expected you to try something like this so I gave you an advantage. One sadly, forgone.**" Enra said.

His smug face and say-so preparation attitude finally pushed Hidan to anger and he flew into a rage, his struggles began anew. Every part of his body screamed for Enra's blood out of need. The ritual demanded it and if it wasn't sated soon it wouldn't end well for Hidan for all power comes at a price, a terrible price that must be paid.

Enra grew entertained by the man in his grasp flailing about helplessly. Hubris turned wrath, the vices increased to worsen Hidan's situation as the coils around him tightened. Their movements struck a chord and a vicious smile formed. "**Oh and I have just had the most delicious idea!**" Enra swung, hard, with Hidan's scythe aimed just above the stump embedding it in the wall.

The snakes forcefully repositioned Hidan's form into a star shape. "**Shall we test a theory? My "smoke cloth," as new as it is to you against your immortal body: which can hold out longest? I wonder…**" He made a hand gesture and at his command, they pulled at every joint in his limbs.

Though Hidan couldn't feel pain he felt the strain on his body and Enra knew Hidan could. He pulled with his hands and they pulled harder. And harder. And harder. Hidan pulled against them, trying to keep himself together with every muscle strand he had. Enra tsked, "**Now, now,**" He slammed Hidan in the wall again. "**Don't waste your energy on futilities. I won't break you so quickly or with such ease. That's not possible given our abilities.** **So I'm going to enjoy this to the fullest, one way or another.**"

(Inside the mindscape)

Darkness was all there was. It is all that existed, all that was real. An endless pool of black waves swirled angrily in silence. Amidst the abyssal waters, deep in the depths, Naruto lay unconscious facing upwards, at the mercy of Enra's dark thoughts. Slight disturbances from the real world shook the stillness that cradled his body. He stirred but didn't wake.

There was more of the same as the fighting kept on outside; the violence barely breaking through the dark waters. But from within, one thing did break through: a silhouette of a woman with long hair. Her motions were slowed as she reached for his face. Her hand stroked his cheek with tender care; her laugh kind and loving. "You always could sleep through anything, my dear Naruto."

The shadow woman tapped lightly on his face bringing light to his eyes. He groaned and blinked once, twice, and looked up at her. Disoriented, he tried to turned over but instead wiggled his body in a fashion that of a fish on land. The woman laughed softly, "Are you okay?" She asked.

Naruto stupidly mumbled about more sleep. Then when registered where he was he put more thought into his words. "I'm fine…wait, who are you?" She brought her hands up to her face. "I forget; things are viewed differently when shrouded in darkness," Her body turned away from Naruto. "Even if it's a friend's darkness." Her voice changed to sadness and woe.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked, still a bit groggy from his slumber. The woman shook her head. "It's nothing right now, but let's see if I can't bring in more light." Her body glowed with a faint light and her appearance became more distinct, and a face he knew well took its form.

"Yunika?" Naruto could barely say her name out of surprise. She materialized in full form with a natural knowing smile, the same as she was the first time he saw her human form. "Did you miss me?" She asked enjoying herself. When he saw her, saw that trademark grin, he lost it. "But what happened to you!?" He blurted out in a rage. "I was out for a while and then when I woke a month had passed and I don't know where my friends are and you weren't in your cage and now I'm working with Itachi and some talking cat and I'm fighting these "things!" that keep trying to kill me almost everywhere I go! And to top it all off I'm still changing into I DON'T KNOW WHAT!"

He gasped for air after raging in one go. Yunika dropped her smile but did nothing else. He caught his breath and looked at her with a face begging for an explanation. "Are you done?" She asked like nothing happened. His look changed to a what-the-fuck look. "If I can get a word in, I have something important to tell you." She said.

"As I stand now, I am not the real thing. By now you may have guessed, my real body has been taken from this vessel and by what means or how you are still alive, I don't know. But that's not the matter here; the words I'm about to utter are some of the few to ever pass these lips and if you ever tell Enra about this I will deny it and give you the worst headache you've ever had." She paused to collect herself.

"I need your help."

Naruto didn't say anything, his face didn't change and his gaze never wavered and that pissed her off. "Well? Aren't you going to say something? I'm asking for help, YOUR help in fact! This is something I do maybe once every ten human lifetimes, no fifty! You should be grateful!"

Her eyes were serious, like nothing Naruto had seen in her. It was something he hadn't thought possible coming from the Kyuubi of all things. He respected it and, although he'd never admit it, he was glad for it. "Well go on. What do you need me to do?"

Yunika blinked, taken off guard. "Excuse me?" Naruto scratched his head. "You asked for help, I'm giving it to you. Why so shocked?" He said. Yunika fumbled about with her words, trying to gather her thoughts. "Well I, which is to say, I didn't think that you would help me, seeing as the things I've done to you…" Her face reddened from frustration.

Naruto saw and tried to hold back his laughter but failing poorly. "It's becoming more difficult to tell, if you really are a demon at times." He laughed and Yunika suppressed the urge to slap him. She let it pass and waited for him to stop. "Are you done?" She asked again.

He gave her the go ahead to start once he stopped. "Before I was extracted, I left behind a piece of myself. It's something similar to what your father did. Before you ask, I learned some things from him while I was locked away inside your mother. Right now I need you to find out what happened to my body and if at all possible deal with the ones who are the cause of all this."

"But I thought it was Goturo who was behind all this? He's the one who did this to you." Naruto told her. Yunika tapped him on the head. "But is he? I think there might be something more behind this than just a power-hungry old man." She ticked off her fingers. "To start with, he knew about me. He had open information about who and what I am, as well as who I was in. That's troubling to hear coming from someone like him and even worse to have him use this information to try to remove me.

"Second, everything was staged from the get go, all to lead you here and deliver me to him on a silver platter. That takes resources and plenty of them to try to hunt someone like you down and bring you to a place like this. Also, the reasoning behind this man's actions and his obsession with me tells me that he's not the one in charge. Someone else with knowledge of me may be pulling the strings here.

"Thirdly, because of the first two I believe they would need my power for something, something important to them and dangerous to us. Why else would they need such a powerful source of chakra? And whatever they plan on using me for is most likely in the prison or a part of it at least. Depending on the source of this place's power, that's where I'll probably be."

Naruto nodded at everything she said while only understanding most of it. He still didn't know where she was in the real world but at least he had something he could go on. He knew that he had to find out what happened to her along with the others who came for him, and if he didn't and she got free somehow…he shuddered at the thought.

While Naruto was in his thoughts, Yunika looked around the darkness of Enra's rage that swallowed everything. _That fool, I wonder what happened to him to work him get into such a frenzy? _She looked back at Naruto, still in his head while in his head. She looked with such concern that when Naruto stopped to see, it almost threw him for a loop.

"What's wrong? You're not acting like you're usual self." He asked. She heaved a sad sigh, "I understand that in all aspects, I should be more worried about my well-being. But because of our situation, for some reason I can't help but worry for your safety." She shook her head. "Don't take it the wrong way; you're quite well known for being foolish and in some cases you almost die from doing so. You have such a knack for throwing yourself in front of others to save them, nearly ending my life in the process. Even now you're probably doing something foolish." She said.

That hit a nerve. "There's nothing foolish about saving the life of someone I care about!" He hollered in response. Yunika merely raised an eyebrow. "Then, is that the same reason you're working so hard to find me?" Those words made him falter some. "I…you…that's not…ahh!" He ruffled his hair out of frustration. "That's not it! I wanted to find you so I could smack that smug look off your face!" He proclaimed.

She laughed cheerfully. She didn't expect this kind of response but it made her laugh. Why the hell did she think it was funny? Naruto was trying to save everyone, including her despite what she put him through, and she was laughing! "What the hell's so funny about me finding you to pummel you?!" He roared in anger.

She stopped to breathe again, that arrogant smirk appearing on her face. "It's because you're willing to go so far as to break down this whole structure all just to "smack this smug look off my face." I'm honored." She replied.

Every word that came out of her mouth just made him angrier and angrier, shortening the wick that tapped into a great bomb. Naruto knew that she was baiting him, tormenting him. Trying to do something he didn't yet understand and that made him all the more furious. But he knew that every time he saw that same, superior smile that she was toying with him, playing with him for her amusement.

His rage had grown to the point his mental body switched forms in flashes, from his Demonic Ascension back to his human body. "That's enough!" He told her. "I've had it with your games! You play me for a fool with every chance you get. Every time you pull something like this I try to see the reasoning behind it, that there's something good about you antagonizing me that I can learn from. But so far, the things you had me do nearly made me lose my lunch and that's just the start!"

Off in the deep dark, a faint light pulsed briefly and went out. Naruto didn't notice and he ranted on. "You are such a selfish, sadistic bitch who only cares about her own well-being and will save her sorry ass at anybody's expense. I can't think of a time when you help me or anyone else without there being some catch!" Once more, the light blinked. Twice.

(Out in the real world)

Hidan was resisting against the smoke. Enra was reveling in the moment presented to him. He was thinking of the many ways he could draw this out; maybe evisceration or simply remove Hidan's joints from his body. He thought about it more and more when—"Ahhh!" Eyes widening in shock and pain, Enra doubled over. Pale and confused, a powerful throbbing shot through his body. Electrical surges shot out from his body and entangled him, wrapping around him like a web of lightning.

Hidan watched and could fell the change in Enra's power; he felt less resistance in the smoke when he pushed. Enra redoubled his efforts to confine him, fighting to keep his focus. He sensed he was losing control to an overwhelming source of anger. It could only be one thing, but it wasn't possible; he shouldn't even be awake!

(Back with Naruto)

Yunika was still laughing, so hard that she held her sides. "Maybe that's the truth, maybe I am nothing more than a manipulative bitch that only cares about herself. I'm a demon at her very core. But tell me this," Yunika stabbed. "What does that make you, a human on the line teetering over the two sides of humankind and demonkind?"

He couldn't dignify her question with a response he was so enraged. "How about some insight: do you even remember what Enra told you about our powers, about how you shouldn't use them without a demonic host?" She said. "Do you remember what was supposed to happen if you did?" That stopped Naruto cold and the memory of the conversation came back. _Those who use their power without a demonic host will become a demon themselves. If Yunika somehow ever gets taken away from you, should it come to pass, do not try to use any power Hell-forged in nature._

She had tears streaming down her eyes now. "Think about what you've probably been doing all this time? I'm willing to bet that you're slowly changing into one of my kind, into a demon as we speak." His mind flashed to his cell, the fighting, the time when his power had started to grow out of control, all of this in the short time he was on the island. His emotions were running wild; he grabbed his head and screamed over and over, "No, no, no! I'm a human damn it! A human!"

"What else would you like me to admit? That when you find me we should just leave and forget about your friends? That you're more use to me as a demon than a human?" She taunted. "Need I go on or can you prove me wrong?"

Right then, something broke inside Naruto and he snapped. His body moved all on its own. He charged at Yunika and grabbed her by the shoulders. That smile. That damn smile never wavered. He shook her and screamed at her but no sound came out. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the seal, HER seal, flashing like a beacon.

He wanted to prove her wrong. He knew he could but he needed more power and right nearby there was an unbelievable amount. In a moment of madness, he made a split-second decision and dove into the demonic power locked away followed by a bright purple light.

And Yunika's image, was burned into Naruto's mind, as it cracked and broke apart forever gone.

(Back in the real world)

An unearthly howl escaped Enra's lips as the anger overtook him; his eyes were no longer his own and completely white with rage and madness. Purple chakra erupted from him with volcanic ferocity as it did before when Naruto was in chains. It was strong enough to blow out Mata's ghostly fireballs that still hung in the sky. Chakra so overpowering that Hidan, bearing witness to this dark awakening, froze in his trials to freedom. The color of poisoned blood lit up where the blue flames couldn't and gave off an eerie scene, adding to the sight Hidan saw.

What is this sensation that tingled up his spine, this long-forgotten feeling of warning? Enra eyes fell to him and his body stiffened further. The scythe he held fell to the ground and in its place the chakra gathered in intensity. _What is he doing with all that power!? Where is it coming from!?_ _The walls! _Hidan turned his body as far as he could to see the metal where some waves of chakra made contact had begun to corrode and crumble apart. "They shouldn't be doing that! The walls should be absorbing your power, any power you can even muster. WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU!?" Where Enra was silent his chakra gave an answer; it was condensed into a familiar spherical shape, a sign of his destruction given physical form.

One last scream of insanity and Enra impaled Hidan with his makeshift purple Rasengan. Flesh met chakra and the Rasengan was unleashed in all its fury: it swelled in size and ate, no, _devoured_ everything it came in contact with. It tore through Hidan's stomach and disintegrated his internal organs, even breaking through to the wall. Blood splashed on Enra's mad grin and the rest pooled on the floor.

Hidan could do nothing in all the mayhem, couldn't feel anything, move anything. But when he was struck with this new attack, a feeling came over him in waves. A part of his mind could tell this wasn't something he felt before, this feeling…of his death. Seeing this revelation, seeing that his end was upon him and unavoidable, he did the natural thing anyone fearing for their life would do: he screamed a long and fearful scream. A cry that echoed off into silence as the sphere ate away at the rest and snuffed his life out.

Soon after that, there was nothing left, no sign that Hidan ever existed save for his weapon and a massive hole in the wall. Enra fell to his knees in exhaustion and released the possession, black flames turning back to white hair. He hadn't felt so spent of power in ages. Now that he had a better grasp on his mind, he looked around in haste at what he had done though he couldn't see well in the darkness in his weakened state. Itachi, Mata and Cora were still a ways off near by the two prisoners' cell.

Cora and Mata were freaked out of their minds; Cora simply out of terror and Mata for seeing a side of an old acquaintance he had never seen before. Itachi, naturally, was neutral. Mata fought through his fear and breathed out some more fireballs to lit-up the area again. This allowed Enra to see them and he made an attempt at a smile, "It's alright. It's over, it's all over." He reassured the young ones. Only, it wasn't.

Cora's eyes grew quite large and she pointed a finger at Enra's stomach. His eyes shot down; in his madness he forgot a crucial detail. The seal originally meant to hold the Kyuubi was now lighting up bright enough to see through the clothing and chakra was still escaping, now with force enough to tear up the ground. _No! What is wrong with me!?_ He scolded himself and dove inside the mindscape filled with worry for the boy.

Though the darkness vanished he found no sign of Naruto but something was still tampering with the seal Yunika crafted. He rushed over to it, seeing his horrors were true. Many cracks were spread out in the seal, finally showing signs of wear. _I knew it, using that much chakra in such a form would cause too much damage to the seal. If dug any deeper, the seal will break apart and…_He approached it and placed his hands on it. The pressure he felt here was mind-boggling, it's no wonder the power he held earlier did the damage it gave.

He had to put an end to this and now before it does worse in the real world. He took two fingers and started writing demonic workings around the seal. He wasn't half-way done when a burst of power escaped with the force of tempest winds. It blew Enra off his feet and a good distance from the seal. He landed on his side and groaned, "By all the curses I know, this has got to stop!"

With every ounce of willpower he had he leapt forward and in three quick strokes, finished the writings and hoping to quell the chakra. Light exploded from the seal and covered Enra in its brilliance. _Only one shot, I hope I have enough time._ Then everything went dark.

(Moments ago, back in the real world)

"What's going on? I thought everything was said and done." Mata questioned over the howling of chakra. Itachi watched on; his sight unchanging when he saw the 4th Hokage's seal and the cat was out of the bag. _Naruto…so, this is what happened to you. _"I can't say; my seal was supposed to have a different effect. I don't know what's going to happen." He admitted.

Enra's body trashed about and more chakra spilled out in great waves. A concentrated burst blew forth from his body, eating away a section of the wall. Arms and legs flailed about hard enough to break bones adding to the random shots of chakra. Another nearly hit the three bystanders, Itachi dodged with ease and Mata grabbed Cora and the two moved just in time. Itachi had seen worse and Mata more so, but Cora, who was hardly any older than Naruto, was frightened by the sight of her savoir. Unable to hold still any longer she went to him, not a thought in her head.

"Cora!" Mata called out but she didn't hear him. She ran, ignoring the resistance the wild chakra gave off, blocked out the flying stones that struck her body. Her mouth made words but she couldn't speak them, couldn't think of a way to help him. Twenty feet away, fifteen feet, then she fought with the last ten. And there he was.

She stood there unable to think, unable to breathe. She stood there unable to do anything but stand there at the center of the storm. Enra's eyes were closed and he didn't move of his own accord; his limbs were too erratic for that. She didn't know how or why but she could tell he was in terrible pain and she wanted to make it stop. All she wanted was to help make the pain stop. So forgoing her fear, she closed her eyes and walked up to him and put her arms around him.

A bright light emitted from Enra's body, surrounding the two and blinding all others. To Cora, the light was warm and caring; a blessing in what has been a cold nightmare. The light shone on for a few moments more and then, as fast as it came, it vanished. The chakra died down and Enra's unconsciously violent movements stopped altogether.

Her eyes opened and she slowly set him down on the broken floor. When he didn't move she pushed him to wake him up. Then she pushed harder when that didn't work. She pounded her fists on his chest in anger but nothing stirred him. Tears welled up threatening to overflow Cora's eyes. She didn't know what else she could do.

Mata watched over her from afar now sat beside her. He sniffed the body once and gave a sigh of relief. "Fear not child, he still breathes. He's just in a deep sleep." He assured her. The tears kept coming but they were of joy now. But the happiness she felt was short-lived; in her moment of joy she felt something like a dark and cold hatred coming towards them and she wasn't the only one.

Mata looked up, eyes narrowing and hissed at the shadows where his fire didn't reach. The sound of footsteps filled the silence of the brutal aftermath. A figure walked into the blue light with no concern for subtlety. It was a man with dark hair and eyes on a calm face, a face Mata knew instantly. "You! You're the one who assaulted my dear mistress back at the temple!"

Finally making his first appearance, Sasuke Uchiha drew his sword and took his time walking up to the fallen Enra. Mata backed away hissing but Cora stayed put, not knowing what to do. Sasuke's eyes were on the two still on the ground, closest to him. "You," His words were light like a breeze, barely audible. "You have been causing quite a bit of trouble for these people, which means you have been making even more trouble for me."

He stood over the two and in a swift motion, plunged the sword into the ground a hairbreadth away from Enra's neck. Cora fell back in reflex. He looked down at the unconscious form with a smile of irony. "Naruto, to think you would go so far as to take power from a demon to save one. You are truly disgusting. I could end all my troubles right here and now…" Sasuke turned the blade inward just enough to break the skin, drawing a single line of blood.

Then he thought against it and removed his hand from the handle and started in on Cora. "But there would be no fun in doing that, not to you. I have more important things at hand than you. For instance," He grabbed Cora with one hand by her arms and lifted her high off the ground. "This brat right here has what Orochimaru is looking for, or knows where it is."

"You keep away from her." Mata growled, stepping up. Sasuke's gaze turned cold. Mata hesitated with his next words. "She may be invaluable to you but she doesn't know anything. Quite frankly she can't remember her own name even. What makes you think that—" Sasuke held up his other hand and Mata went quiet. "I'll deal with you next; I have some questions for you as well as your mistress."

He looked back at Enra with interest. "I want to know what happened to make him like that and someone is going to tell me, one way or the other." He turned back and in the edge of the light he thought he saw someone standing there, veiled in the shadows. To be sure he threw two kunai hidden away and listened as they passed through the dark figure and struck metal. A small smile slipped out…

(Unknown, with Naruto)

After the flash, something broke off in Naruto's mind and he disappeared from his own mindscape to a place he wasn't familiar with. It was a dark place, a lonely place filled with mist. Nothing but mist and shadow everywhere he looked. He called out for Enra, Mata, and Cora, anybody else who may be listening. Only silence answered.

Naruto stopped saying anything and looked down, sulking. As he stared at his feet he noticed the ground looked familiar. The ground was made of building blocks, the kind you use to make a small landing or a bridge…Then more of the ground cleared around him and he recognized where he was: he stood on the Great Naruto Bridge of his past.

_I remember this place, this was where I fought Zabuza and Haku and Sasuke nearly…_ As fast as the thought came the mist swirled around his and figures appeared. He saw Haku and his Crystal Ice Mirrors justu wreaking havoc on two smaller people. _It's Sasuke…and me!_ He saw them fighting for their lives, makes plays at escaping to no avail.

_I understand now, these are my memories of when I was young. If I remember right, Sasuke tries to save me soon._ Sure enough, he watched his old comrade made a dash for his younger self and was impaled multiple times with needles. He watched as Sasuke went down and the younger Naruto went to his fallen friend. He watched as his younger self asked why and he watched as Sasuke stopped moving.

Things started to grow hazy as the air turned heavy and stale. The stones were razed by evil chakra and what little remained he could make out he heard four words before the memory faded, _"I'm gonna kill you!"_

He fell into a new memory, one he didn't know or remember. He saw himself back inside the mindscape of Yunika's prison. The twelve-year-old looked at the cage doors with fear of the unknown. Naruto walked up to his past self, standing beside him. Even in his situation he had to smile; he never realized how short he used to be until now.

A deep growl from the shadows of the cage startled the two. To Naruto, it was something he hadn't heard in since he first saw her when this all started. But in this memory, to the smaller Naruto it was the first time hearing something so beastly. A great big pair of red, blood-thirsty eyes shot open with a toothy grin large enough to swallow him whole a second after.

The child screamed and fell on his backside into the water. The red orbs leered at this little thing that fell over itself in fear. Cerulean eyes gawked and cowered at this intensity looming over him. "**Why are you here?**" The beast demanded in a vicious voice. "**Why have you come to break my peace? What do you want?**"

_This must be a memory Yunika locked away; from the looks of it this was the first time we interacted. Wonder why this was one of them? _Teen Naruto looked up at the face that screamed his death. "Where am I!? What happened to Sasuke and what the heck are you!?" Kyuubi roared; a great bellow that blew him away further. Naruto threw his arms up in defense, but when nothing happened to him he dropped them and continued to watch.

"**I am Kyuubi, the Nine-tailed Demon Fox that lies within you. A monster of dangerous and terrible power and you dare to set foot in my grudging solitude! Now tell me why you are here! Answer me!**" Teen Naruto sat up and ranted in fear, "I don't know why I'm here, wherever this is. I don't know who you are and what I wanted was to…" He slowed, his mind starting to go back into focus. His thoughts flashed to Sasuke lying on the ground with many needles sticking out of his body and a switch was flipped in his brain. An angry stare grew on him as he glared on at nothing, "I wanted to kill the one who hurt a friend of mine."

This quelled the beast's anger but its eyes were still full of suspicion. They moved closer, close enough to see the demon's face. "**You wish for someone's death so badly, someone who hurt a friend of yours?**" Both Narutos looked at Kyuubi. "Yes. I wasn't strong enough and someone I know got badly hurt. I need more power." He said.

Kyuubi looked past his face, past the child that is. Past the obvious fear he carried for her, past the anger he felt for Haku. Peeling back the layers of his life was second nature to her, pouring over his memories. _What do you see? Yunika, what do you want to see?_ He thought. Red blinked, "**I don't care for the interests of humans or their concerns but if its power you want, I have more than enough. But you must give me a reason.**"

"A-a reason? Why a reason?" He stuttered. Kyuubi snapped at the bars with aggravation. "**There's no reason to kill but there's always a reason to wield power! Revenge and blood and hatred, they all triggers for power. But power alone will not help you if you don't have a reason to direct it. Do you hate them enough? Want them dead enough?**" A feral smile with fangs like blades spread slowly. "**Would you do anything for the power you desire?**"

Naruto knew that trading power for revenge was wrong, even back then. He had always believed that fighting for your ideals and the right training can make you more powerful and bring you a better understanding of yourself. And he also knew that smile on the beast behind the bars in front of him. The grin meant something was up; he knew her long enough that she had something planned for her benefit. Yet as he looked upon his younger form, he watched as his face slowly changed from anger to one of deep thought.

The mind of a child was trying to figure out the rights and wrongs of power. Naruto shook his head failing to see something, anything that Yunika could gain from this. With the outcome that was certain as he was living proof, Naruto was more curious on the case of why she would even offer him the power she was saving for more important causes.

A claw lashed out in impatience making Teen Naruto flinch. "**Well?**" Kyuubi growled. Her teeth ground together producing a sound like rocks scraping against each other. The boy had the look; one Naruto was told to have when he was close to snapping and about to do something reckless. _No, come on. Don't do something we're going to regret._

But naturally as he very well knew himself, quite literally this time, the boy stood in defiance of the otherworldly creature and proclaimed, "Fine! Yes, I'll take your power! I'll take it, so I can show you I can beat anyone who tries to hurt my friends and people I look up to. I'll beat them all!"

Cruel laughter filled the room, "**You say that now, but what will you think under the influence of my chakra? Mine is empowered by rage and hatred and will overwhelm you. If your hate isn't strong enough to overpower mine you will lose yourself to me.**" He stopped only for a second but it was all she needed. "**It is a very powerful and tempting essence that will change you to your very core; you will come to hate and will desire the blood of every person you see. You will become a monstrous beast, an avatar of destruction, MY avatar.**" She moved closer, close enough for her eyes to fill Naruto's vision. "**After hearing that, are you still willing to go through with this?**"

"If I don't, I die anyway." He spread his arms wide in acceptance. "**So be it.**" And a river of red chakra flowed from the shadows of the cage. It gripped him and engulfed his body, in the same manner that Enra took over completely. In the form of a hand it pulled him closer to the bars and Kyuubi extended a claw through them. "**The more you struggle, the more it will hurt.**" Kyuubi said to the unnerved blonde pressing the tip of her claw to his forehead. "**If it's of any consolation, this fear you feel will go away. You won't remember any of this.**"

Naruto heard the boy scream bloody murder but before he could even think he was thrown out of this memory and put back on the bridge, in the middle of Haku's justu. The scene had changed from before, Sasuke was still on the ground but the Naruto of the past was different, looked less man and more beastly. _This is what I look like when I use this power…I never knew I was a monster even then._

Haku tried again and again to inflict damage even slow him down anyway he could; needles at the right pressure points to inhibit movement. It worked to an extent but failed when he removed them all in a blast of chakra. Haku realized then that this was a losing battle and made to retreat. However he wasn't given a chance. Naruto grabbed Haku's arm with tremendous force, nearly crushing the bone.

Though Naruto couldn't see it, Haku bore a face of bewilderment; such power, strength and ferociousness he had never seen before, not even from his master. He watched and felt as Naruto exerted his new chakra, pushing it out in endless streams to break every mirror surrounding him.

Naruto clenched his other hand enforcing it with chakra and belted Haku clean in the face with every strain of power he had. Sending him flying through the last mirror and destroying his mask, Haku hit the ground and nearly fell unconscious. His arms were wobbly; he fell trying to get off the ground. He picked his head up in time to see a foot aimed for his face. Another hit and he was sent through the air again.

Haku flew but not far as he was grabbed by his legs and slammed on the ground. Haku coughed up blood from the force of the impact. Then Naruto hit him again and again and again and again. He kept on as his fists were stained with blood. He kept on as Haku fought back in vain, his blows weak from lost effort. He didn't slow, didn't stop, and didn't even hear the muttered pleads coming from the fake Tracker ninja. All that he could hear was the blood flowing from Haku's veins.

Each hit was like an echo to Naruto, reaching back through time and hitting him with the same force of those punches. He didn't fare well viewing this event of his past take place; if he could, he would have vomited from watching the beating his past self was giving to Haku.

Fists stopped flying and Haku was quiet. His face was utterly shattered, his broken nose the source of an endless flow of blood. His right eye was nearly gone and the other was swelled shut. What remained of his chest wasn't moving; the raging blonde had enough sense to be sure that this one was dead. But he didn't care for that, he wasn't satisfied with that alone.

He picked up Haku by his hair and threw him out into the mist. He waited to hear it, the sound of the body landing on the ground and when he did he chased after it with the real Naruto following close behind. When he stopped he found himself standing in the blast seat of new events: Kakashi was fighting Zabuza the latter of whom was held captive by a number of dogs clamped to his body.

Haku's dead form was found between them, making both of them turn his way in surprise. Their mouths were moving but he couldn't hear them or tell what they said by reading their lips but he didn't care. He didn't see the two ninja. All he saw was his next victims. He howled in excitement and his chakra exploded forcefully blasting Kakashi and Zabuza off their feet, overpowering the ninja hounds and sending them away.

Naruto rushed after Zabuza while in mid-flight, tackling him. Zabuza broke free of Naruto's grapple using a swift knee to the boy's face followed by an unseen kick from the right. Naruto gasped for breath while he was caught in the stomach and restrained by Kakashi holding his arms behind his back and pushed him to the ground.

A buzzing sound filled his ears, the intolerable buzzing that irritated Naruto, fueling his rage. Every fiber in his body tensed up with chakra-induced fury and it was building. Only briefly did Kakashi's hold keep for Naruto's strength and persistence was greater than he could expect as he thrashed about like an aggravated bull that disliked its rider.

Naruto used his power to throw his body off the ground taking his mentor with him and they weren't in the air alone. Zabuza came up with his **Kubikiri Bouchou **to cleave them both and nearly did. Kakashi intervened with a last second pull taking them both out of harm's way, if only for the moment. Naruto shifted his body weight enough to twist one arm free and hit Kakashi in the face with an elbow and, while the man was stunned, squirmed free.

As soon as his feet touched ground he attacked Zabuza again with a roar. Zabuza swung the blade low and fast, cutting a clean line into the ground before raising it up. Naruto dodged the swing that carried the wind with it barrel-rolling as he did, making a swipe of his own aimed for Zabuza's head. Zabuza used too much force in his attack and left himself wide open.

Zabuza was positioned where he was reeling back from his attack like he was going to fall and with the raging blonde going at him that's exactly what he chose to do. He fell backwards. There was a small window of time where Zabuza hovered in the air and Naruto sailed over him. He looked down as soon as he did; bloodlust met bloodlust, shrunken pupils shook from adrenaline and anger.

Naruto savagely lashed out with his foot and caught Zabuza in the chin, sending him bouncing over the stone like a rock skipping across the water. Zabuza landed awkwardly on his back and when he sat up he realized his sword was free from his hands. His eyes scoured the bridge for it but found it too late: Naruto stood over **Kubikiri Bouchou **and stooped down to pick it up. It was heavier than it looked but he had no problems lifting it with one hand.

He must have been a frightening sight as he heaved it onto his shoulder; a demon child with death-hungry eyes, carrying the appropriately named "Decapitating Carving Knife." A cruel spirit armed with a cruel weapon, one that has drank the life blood of many poor souls innocent or otherwise and now it would claim another life.

Naruto saw Zabuza, recognized the face of the man who tried to kill him, and his anger flared higher and higher until soon he was nearly blind with rage. His hold tightened on the sword but not on his temper and he went wild. What could have been seconds felt like minutes to him; he flew over the ground as birds flew through the skies yet he floated above crawling stone.

He raised the blade above his head with one hand and brought it down on the spot where Zabuza was. Even with his strength he used the sword clumsily; he wasn't accustomed to using such a weapon and ended up using it more like a hammer. Zabuza didn't have a harder time dodging him with it than without.

Though uncoordinated he could use it with speed, faster and faster Naruto swung it from edge to flat, using every part of the blade to cut maim beat bludgeon killkillkill. Slowly he had been closing the gap between the two and took a big leap forward swinging wide, aimed at Zabuza's ribs. So fast, too fast to react save block, Naruto slammed Zabuza with the flat of the blade breaking his right arm. Zabuza slid on the ground from the impact, still standing.

He pulled out a kunai with his remaining hand but for all the good it could do against a massive sword made to cleave through iron and bone. Naruto twisted right and whipped the heavy blade around. With only one arm Zabuza had no choice but to defend with his knife. Blocking such brutal attacks head-on was madness so using what skill he had left he used it to divert Naruto's attacks by sliding the kunai along the blade to set it off course just enough to miss.

With such a small weapon the tactic wouldn't last long; he veered off the wild attacks three times but his hand was shaky from the strain. Five more times he danced past death but the sixth didn't go so well. Putting both hands on **Kubikiri Bouchou**, he swung from his right putting all his strength into it, catching Zabuza's left side with the pointed end on the reverse side and crushing his ribs.

Zabuza had brought up his left in defense to try inching his stolen blade away from his body and erred in his position. He spun from the hit and lost his footing, a cyclone of limbs flew about before he fell. Instantly he found himself trapped under his own sword's backside across his chest, point impaling the ground, edge facing the sky. He tried worming out from underneath but it was difficult when you had both arms recently broken.

Naruto put his foot down on the handle to keep his prey in place. An inhuman hatred and loathing glowed in his eyes. Red chakra flared up on his skin like a hungry fire and he burned at the heart of it. He looked down at the man and with his foot still on the sword he stomped. Hard.

The result was expected: his ribs cracked. Zabuza thrashed about under the pain and that made the pain worse. Naruto stomped again and broke ribs. Zabuza's movements grew frantic; his cries filled the air but were all for not. Through the pain and the screams Zabuza glared at him with a look that would have unnerved most people.

In response, Naruto kicked up his chakra again with force. It swelled up and around like a ball holding storm winds. It shot outward fast. It made the air heavy and thick with the stench of death. The ground began to shake; little flakes of stone floated from the surface of the bridge. He bellowed a great and feral sound that added to the chaos he caused. Out of the corner of his vision Kakashi was running to him, hand extended. Then everything faded to black.

Naruto stood in the darkness of his mind, in horror of his anger as a child. Was this what she meant by wanting her peace? Or did she mean something else entirely? There was more to the memory, he knew this but for the life of him he just couldn't remember! But after seeing this he wasn't sure he wanted to. What if he did something to Kakashi or Sakura and they never told him?

For now he had enough of memories. He just wanted to get back to the real world and to do that… "Enra! You still there? I need you to give me back my body!" His call went unanswered. His worries went much because he did this before but when he called out two more times and was answered with silence, they grew.

"Come on Enra tell me what's going on. Even I can see something's off, and that is saying a lot." He raised his arms. "What, you can't give me a sign of safety? All's well in the world?" When he still didn't get a response he got angry. "Damn it all to your world, if I have to I will force my way back into my head and when I do I'm—" In a quick rise-and-fall of smoke, Enra materialized with hands up.

"Finally! I thought I was going to have to mind wrestle you. What's happening outside?" He asked. Enra looked worried (_what the hell did he do_?) and he moved around with caution as you would when trying not to startle a wild animal.

"Sorry youngling, I was preoccupied with something that came up. Now as I have come to understand it that something might set you off in ways I can't allow, for your safety. _Someone_ wants to talk to you about something you may know about but for the time I can only allow you use of your head." He chewed on the word like it was a bell soon to be rung.

Naruto brought up and dropped his shoulders, "Come on, how bad could it be?" Enra sighed and snapped his fingers. Darkness fell again and Naruto could feel that he was back in the real world. Enra had kept his hold for just a few seconds longer for a last warning. "_Now remember you must try and stay calm. If you can't I will have to restrain you. Choose your words carefully._" Enra said and released control.

Naruto took a deep breath for one of the few times he took caution and he opened his eyes to look around. He found himself sitting cross-legged with his arms behind his back, staring at a wall cast in blue light. Cora and Mata were sitting at his side facing the opposite direction, the redhead at his left and the cat, the right, who was growling lightly. He tried to move but Enra had a good grip on his body still.

"Mata, what's going on? Who is it?" As though predicted, the answer came quickly from Mata. "This was the man who came to the temple before your friends did." Going over Naruto's head he turned it as far as he could. He saw a shadow being by a sitting figure beyond his sight. "I know its cliché by now, but it's been a while."

He didn't need to see it to tell who it was now, that voice was one he had heard since childhood and not too long ago. Anger and joy conflicted with each other. A thousand things came to mind but none could pass through his lips. He heard something shift behind him and a sigh, "So tell me: since when do you willing take help from demons?"

**A/N:** DONE!

Sorry, I was busy working so much I didn't get much a chance to settle things here. So Sasuke's in! Yes I know I haven't used him much or technically yet if you prefer. From here on out I can divulge more on the good stuff now. (Yay!) So enjoy the read and as always, R&R!


	26. A Long Overdue Explanation

**A/N: **Time for something as necessary as life when it comes to story-telling: the explanation of the important parts. From last chapter I brought in Sasuke officially for the first time and now we will be divulged with some much needed info on things. Let's get started.

A Long Overdue Explanation

"Sasuke." It wasn't a question Naruto stated. It was weight he used to hold himself down to the revelation his old friend brought with his presence. He knew that Enra couldn't hold him forever and he knew he didn't have forever; Sasuke would make his move as soon as he had all he needed. For now he would keep calm, be patient and when the timing was right he would break Enra's hold and go for the Uchiha.

"You're here for the sword too aren't you?" He couldn't see Sasuke's face but he heard the slight surprise in his voice. "When did you figure it out?" Naruto shrugged. "I had to piece some things together; you know how long it takes for me to figure out something complicated. So I had Enra fill me in on the rest that happened while I was away."

"The other one in your head I assume?" Sasuke poked. Naruto shifted to better check his body for any signs of damage during Enra's fight. Some bruises here and there and had a wound on his hand, nothing severe so far. He should still be able to fight.

"_Naruto…" _Enra's warning echoed in his head. Naruto mentally shrugged him off, "No point in lying to you. It's not like things can get even worse for me now if you're here." Sasuke hmmed at the comment; he wasn't sure whether to take as an insult or a compliment. "Care to tell me anything else?"

"Well…you remember the Kyuubi right? Well, the beast's gone. Apparently Goturo tore her out and I don't know where she is." Another change in Sasuke's voice, sounded like mockery. "She? You make it sound like its human." "After what I've seen her do, believe me it's the furthest thing from my mind. Then there's these two," He nodded to the two beside him. "One was sent by someone named Mistress Baba who either has something to do with me or wants something I have. The other is a girl with no name or memory of her own I found locked away inside a cage in the prison weapons vault. As you can see I let her out and so far she's been a good help." Mata bared his fangs.

Sasuke chuckled, a small wave of humor passing through him. "You put your luck in a demonic talking cat and an amnesiac girl? What strange company you keep these days…still," The sounds of movement stirred Naruto's attention. He heard footsteps coming up, stopping just behind him.

"The idea of that monster out of you and you still alive afterwards intrigues me. I believe we should have this conversation in private." A hand fell on his head and snapped it back. Naruto winced at the quick shock of pain opened his eyes to the sight of Sasuke's Sharingan. He found himself staring into those dark eyes and before he knew it he was pulled back into the mindscape. He was inside the cage deep in the back of the shadows staring outside at Sasuke leaning against the bars with his back turned.

"It is true then, it demon's gone." Sasuke said. The tone of his voice wasn't judgmental or arrogant as it normally was. It was quiet, questionable like he wasn't sure of himself. Naruto approached his old teammate with caution, sensing the change. He didn't like it.

"What else do you want?" He asked. Sasuke didn't move from his spot in front of the cage, silent. Without a sound, Enra appeared alongside Sasuke facing Naruto but eyes on the prodigy. Sasuke turned to look at the smoke demon. Night eyes stared out at each other, the air of intensity around them told of a silent talk between the two. Naruto was at arm's reach when he asked, "What is it Enra?"

His gaze didn't waver. "This young man is wondering what had happened to you and to Yunika in the time span we shared together and that of the time you had from when you started out up to our first meeting. I am currently telling him all this and in return he is telling me something interesting and quite helpful in your cause."

Naruto opened his mouth and Enra put a finger up. "Give us another moment. There is a lot of information here to process. Your friend has been through quite a lot." Naruto backed off and waited. Five minutes passed and the two gave no sign of breaking off their staring contest. While they were quietly getting to know each other better he was thinking of other reasons why Sasuke would show himself now of all times. Where had he been hiding since their last encounter and what did he need the sword for? Frankly he was fed up with these new events and not being in the loop.

Ten more minutes passed and no change from the two. Naruto was leaning against the bars, arms crossed and fingers tapping away. He was growing impatient and with it his temper. He pushed off the bars and wandered around to calm his thoughts when he saw the seal and he grew curious.

It had a new addition placed on it: a six-sided star detailed with demonic language. Naruto was familiar with it now after seeing it used multiple times before with Enra and Yunika. This handiwork was that of the former no doubt. He turned around, "Hey Enra!" Their stare down ended abruptly and was moved to him. "Your mom never taught you not to write on the walls? What's with the new ink work?"

Enra, now irritated, scowled at the boy. "I devised a seal of my own and put it to use on the cracked one for your sake. When you pushed the limits of the control over your chakra, it ran rampant and wild which resulted in the seal nearly breaking open. That "ink work" as you call it is the only thing holding your power in check at the moment. Now be silent for a minute longer please!" He snapped and returned to the mind-to-mind chat.

_Great, something else I don't have a clue about. The list just keeps on growing._ He looked over the demon's work and the seal's damage. To his surprise the progression wasn't much; there were no new big cracks. There was only one thing worth taking notice: at the seal's edge a tiny fragment had broken off. Naruto paused his inspection to slide his hand over the missing piece. Memories flashed by of his time in the darkness.

_That was one of my memories locked away inside this thing. How many more are imprisoned like that one and how far would I have to go to reach the other ones_? After having enough questions floating around in his head he pushed them aside for now and addressed the two. He had been patient long enough.

Naruto went back to the bars and slipped through them, just in time for Enra and Sasuke to finish their talk. Sasuke smirked at him, "It seems like you've been busy as of late. Were you actually dumb enough to try and take on a mizuchi?" The word sailed over Naruto's head. "Eh? What's that?" "The rather large creature we fought in the moat before we were captured." Enra explained.

"Oh that, damn thing nearly took my head off with Yunika's insane plan." Naruto complained. He rubbed his neck at the memory. Sasuke chuckled, "Still as reckless as you have always been. But that recklessness may have come in handy for you today." Naruto didn't have a clue about what he meant but most of the time he never did until it mattered. In fact, he knew Sasuke didn't do anything without thought unless it mattered.

"So why are you here? Not outside hunting down that sword, but in here wasting your time with me?" Naruto asked giving him a look saying he wouldn't take no for an answer. Sasuke didn't give in as he simply stated, "Mutually-assured victory or destruction should we fail."

Naruto blinked. "What do you mean?" Enra sighed and took a deep breath. "This boy has been keeping tabs on us for a time, along with your friends as they made their way to this place. According to his information, something big is going down and that sword plays a key role in it. We still don't know why he took Yunika, except maybe to use as a power source."

Sasuke grumbled at the thought. "I've had that theory before, but after going over this place a number of times I haven't found much of a resource possible to wield that much power. So now I've been forced take," He stopped and looked at Naruto with an annoyed scowl. "Drastic measures. This isn't my first option and after the last time we met things didn't pan out well for either of us. That being said I need your help in this matter."

Naruto dropped his gaze. Sasuke needed his help. _Needed his help_. Those words didn't fit together in his mind. Enra felt his surprise and felt for the boy. Like Yunika he could see Naruto's memories; the times the young blonde and the one with cursed eyes fought, both against and alongside each other. He saw a time when the two were comrades as young boys. Another time of when they fought each other on a roof top, one in a prideful rage and the other sad inside that he must fight what he once called a friend. He understood the pain the boy went under when he lost his friend to the darkness; he felt the same when he saw Yunika in chains so long ago, and seeing her now in the same situation only to first be locked behind bars and then to be in the clutches of a man with dark and unknown motives.

He watched Naruto pick his head up but his expression wasn't a good one. Naruto had a look of fury and determination and it was about to get worse; he could feel the boy's temper rising. If the two were to clash words now it would build into disaster. Sensing danger, he had a last minute idea. He closed his eyes and his shadow outward and made contact with Naruto's shadow. Naruto shivered as an overwhelming sensation filled him, the same as when he was being possessed. Sasuke cocked a brow at him but paid no mind.

Naruto sighed and lowered his gaze. "Why should I bother to give you my help? With all your skills you should easily be able to find the sword and take it to your master." Sasuke's eye gave a little twitch. The blonde raised his eyes again and they were devoid of rage. In its place was contempt.

"What's with the look? Where did all the anger go? The loser I knew when we were kids would have gone at me by now or tried to talk me into going back with you to the village." Sasuke asked in an arrogant breath. Naruto gained a smile from this. "Presumptuousness does not become you. In fact it makes you slightly ludicrous that you would assume anything. If brilliance is as brilliance does, you've made a stupid move presenting yourself in this manner."

The arrogance was dropped from his voice. "You've gotten wordier since the last time we met. Been hitting the books have we?" "I have learned quite a lot during my mission, the majority of it I learned here behind bars. You would be surprised what can be accomplished when you have a month to yourself." His words were careful, slow yet fluent. What can he possibly learn in a place like this with almost a month by himself? Sasuke mentally laughed at the idea.

"Actually I can learn a few neat tricks, like how to read an invasive mind if they entered my own thoughts first, like how you just laughed at the idea of me learning anything of value in your eyes." Naruto admitted bemused. "Really? You must be joking. As if you could read my thoughts, even in this state." Sasuke snickered and turned to Enra to continue but he looked like he was asleep. Sasuke grew skeptic at this whole thing. _This loser's bluffing needs work. Like I would believe he can read minds._

"Believe what you want to if it will make you feel better, though you may be right; I need to work on my poker face." Naruto said with a big grin. Sasuke moved to raise his guard and eject himself but discovered he could no longer remove his consciousness from Naruto's mind.

His eyes shot downward and saw shadows dancing on the ground: shadows with faces both human and animal. They were in a constant state of flux: the emotions shifting from joy to rage to laughter to sadness. A darkness rose from the wavy sea of black beneath him and wrapped around his body, applying pressure to his joints.

_What the hell is this!? I didn't sense anything like this earlier. _Sasuke strained his body against the coiling shadows. His arms and legs pulled at the bindings with difficulty, resisting the pain that erupted from his joints. "Now," Naruto snapped his fingers and the shadows pulled Sasuke closer. Their faces were inches apart, one in struggling anger and the other in pure antipathy. "I think we need to have a talk about the temporary truce we will make so both parties get the benefits they deserve, one where neither of us receive the short end of the proverbial stick."

Sasuke stopped wiggling around long enough to breathe deeply to calm himself. "What are you suggesting?" He asked. Naruto snapped his fingers again and Sasuke felt the dark hold loosen slightly. "I'm suggesting you tell me everything you know about this place and your mission; why you are here, what you know about this place and most importantly, what you know about my situation. I know you told Enra. It only seems fair."

"And what would I get in this truce?" Naruto cocked his head to the side, a devilish smile curling on his lips. "You would get the information I have on this place during my stay here and where the sword could be. I have even more to offer than that." He held up his hand his snapping fingers at the ready. "So do we have an agreement? Or would you rather be caged up like a worthless relic of the past?"

Sasuke didn't take long to consider. "Fine then. Let me go and I'll tell you what you want to know." He turned his body slack to show he was complying. Naruto didn't move. "On what assurances do I have that you will keep your word? I know everything you do is in your own interests much like why you need me."

Sasuke knew it and didn't deny it. He also didn't have time for this. "Fine, the short version for what's wrong with you is you have two new chakra affinities, one of them alien and both very powerful." Now Naruto raised a brow at the new information. "If you want more, you know what to do." Sasuke reminded him by shaking what he could move.

The blonde's eyes rolled around in thought and he nodded. He knew he wouldn't get much farther by arguing. Repeating the motion the sound echoed through the space and Sasuke was free. He stood up and checked his limbs. "Sometimes I forget the mental strain can still affect your body if it's great enough." Naruto grew impatient. "Tell me what you know."

He stretched out his arms, groaning at the popping sound they made. "Orochimaru is still afflicted with the justu that the 3th Hokage placed on him and suffers from it day by day. Since then he has been seeking remedies for the pain his under. For a time he sought ways to relieve the agony he had been put under but when he realized it wouldn't be that simple, he tried looking for other ways solve his dilemma. After some searching and some trial and error, he uncovered a rumor about a weapon designed to be effective with seals, hence why I'm here chasing a now not-so-rumored weapon."

"Rumored is ridiculous, I know it's real; I got cut with the damned thing." Naruto said matter-of-factly. His hands went to the place where he was previously wounded. "But the strange thing about it was after I was injured, my wound was healed with no scarring. Before that time however it has come to my understanding that Yunika was removed from me but how I am still alive is currently beyond me. Any thoughts as to how that might be possible?"

"I'm not one to boast about my lack of skill with sealing justu, it's beyond me. Whatever happened to you is something I've never heard of happening before with your kind. That is to say, no one has done it and survived without the need to be revived like your friend Gaara. Maybe this Goturo did something to you before or after the extraction?" Sasuke offered.

Enra opened his eyes. He remembered something the cat had afore mentioned to him. His consciousness left for the moment and he returned to the outside world finding himself staring at the Uchiha's eyes. He smirked with Naruto's lips, "If you keep on staring like that, you'll have to buy me dinner." He cracked.

"It's about time you came out all on your own. You're really the one I wanted to talk to in private, and we can't do that inside this guy's head. Pardon for getting touchy but I need to make constant eye contact for this to work." Enra coughed lightly so as not to distract the boy. "Mata," He said. The cat was still scowling at Sasuke when he answered. "What happened now?"

Giving him a quick smirk, "I'd like you to tell this young man here what you told us, when you were keeping tabs on the boy here. It should bring him up to speed and give him an idea as to what may have happened to the boy." Mata's stare didn't change for the better; in fact he looked even angrier than he did before.

"Why should we bother to tell him anything? I should kill this whelp on principle alone for defiling my mistress's temple!" Mata's breath turned ghastly blue as he prepared a fireball. Enra twitched and his shadow stretched to block Mata's attack. The flaming spray ate at the corporeal darkness but it didn't even come close. "You forget yourself Mata," Enra spoke as the shadow resisted the fire. "In our sad state we need the extra help. Collaboration is key to survival in times like these."

Mata killed his flames but his anger was broiling hot still. "Remember Mata," Enra gave off a dark presence that Mata could feel, making the fur on his back stand up. "I was summoned by Naruto, who plays the role of my master, just as you play the part of being your mistress's servant. We work to assure our master's safety. You understand that as well as I do." He stated.

Mata growled under his breath. "Just because I understand it doesn't mean I have to like it." And on that note he told Sasuke what he experienced during his time here as he had told the others. After hearing every word he thought over the reasons, tried putting the pieces together. "Well the first thing I see is obvious: Goturo wants whatever the Kyuubi is hiding or whatever it did to Naruto. They may even be one and the same." He said.

Enra would have rolled his eyes at the bothersome child if he didn't need to break off the justu. "Yes I have thought of that as well." He responded with heavy sarcasm. "If that's all you can come up with then maybe you can move on to the strange power flux happening to the two of us, me and the boy." "Ah yes that. I have seen you in action as such. It is impressive, that chakra of yours." Sasuke complimented. "From what I've witnessed and felt, your chakra is demonic; the proof is shown on the walls when you were using that chakra justu. Naruto's idea I take it?"

Enra's smile returned. "Surprisingly yes. He believed that by venting an equal amount of chakra he could cancel out the amount that was building up inside, like two energies of the same type colliding together. I had thought it was reckless but there must be a god looking out for that boy." He chuckled at the irony.

Even Sasuke gave a little grin; the irony wasn't lost on him either. "To continue with this, we'll need to join back with him. And you will be needed." He looked at Mata when he said it. Mata's eyes darted from Enra to Sasuke and back in surprise. "Hold on, who will be needed where?" He said nervously. "Ah don't you worry little kitty cat, I've got this one." Enra said with a playful yet dark smile. He raised an arm in Mata's direction and his shadow stretched to meet the dark spot under the cat. The motion took Sasuke by some small degree of surprise; he shouldn't have been able to move while under his justu yet he did so with grace. He will need to keep an eye on this one.

Mata was freaking the hell out at the sudden change in plot as the shadows swallowed him up. "Wait, my mind isn't ready for this! This is a—" All three were sent back into Naruto's mind. Naruto hadn't moved since he left, like he was off in his own little world. The joke brought a smile to his face but he chose to hide it.

"Nice to see you smile, if only in your head," Naruto commented. "But did you need to bring in a guest?" He threw a thumb over at an oddly surprising and slightly amusing sight: behind the bars of the cage there was a huge looming shadow in the shape of a cat with four brightly-glowing beige eyes and archaic markings along its spine ending it its tails. It was just as big if not bigger than the Kyuubi and it was more than irritated. "Terrible idea. This is a terrible idea." Mata said. His voice was amplified and it was like listening to rolling thunder.

Naruto just smiled albeit a wincing one. "I have to say, I like this side of you Mata; you look less the part of a demonic feline and more the pet of a demonic god off its leash." All four eyes glared at the boy who waved off the dagger stare. Naruto had new questions regarding Mata's form but decided to hold them for later and returned his attention to Sasuke the smile now gone. "Now, back to where we were. You were saying something about alien chakra?" He paused leaving an opening for Sasuke to start.

"Right. The alien chakra is demonic in origin; logically the 'demonic power' in question would have had to come from the Kyuubi. Enra has brought me up to speed with the events that transpired and this new development with the seal meant to hold back all that power. It was brilliant to use this trick as a final insult to the caster, but as you said brilliance is as it does."

Sasuke was beginning to go on and it was getting annoying at this point. Naruto snapped his fingers bringing the shadows creeping back. "Oh please, do go on." He said in a tone clearly stating that he shouldn't. Getting the not-so-subtle point, Sasuke moved on. "I don't know all the details, but with Enra regaling me with most of what's happened I have enough to make a few guesses.

Enra's hand went into his robe and brought out the sake bottle from before. He uncorked it and emptied its contents onto the floor, the golden fluid mixing with the water. As the water splashed about, golden ripples appeared in the murk and spread outward, giving the water a hypnotic effect. The ripples reached the walls and splashed back breaking down the gold and turning the water back into its dark black.

"I'll take the floor from here." Enra said. He raised a hand to the water and tiny specks begun to float up from the watery collective and gathered into a blue sphere the size of a human head. It flew up to his open hand and his raised it to eye level. "Picture this is your chakra as you were a child. You had no use for it as a young boy until you underwent training to utilize your power." The water surrounding them glowed a malevolent red and stirred with agitation and unrest. "This is a representation of the Kyuubi's power, wild and destructive as it is and always has been.

"As a child your power was small and insufficient to stand against the venomous power that sleeps inside you, so it was forced to grow to stand against this great and terrible power she had possessed." The sphere grew larger and changed dimensions, warping from a sphere to a large disk, into the size of a large pond. "This is roughly four times the size of the normal amount of a ninja's chakra, which is about the same amount you had when the seal first cracked away during your fight with the ice child Haku. And from there your power has continued to grow to accommodate for the Kyuubi's chakra, until it has reached its current limit, using the information from your past experiences and trials."

The pool of chakra exploded to gargantuan size; it filled the whole ceiling above them that even Mata in his giant body had to lower his head to avoid the mass growth. "This," He said in a praised voice. "This is vast amount you have managed to gather, not just by yourself but also with the sage teachings you have learned to help you gather even larger amounts of chakra. Your collective power is borderline inhuman."

Naruto's vein started to throb at the mention of 'inhuman' so Enra cleared his throat and moved on. "This has proven to be a good thing; this is where our theory comes into play, and the key to it all, just happens to be your father's altered seal." He pointed at the glowing art patch on the cage.

Naruto looked over at the seal now glowing like a purple heart. "I've noticed, and felt it myself. You can skip all the technical jargon to save us time." He said. Enra moved his other hand and the red water funneled upward, spiraling towards the blue water. "Your father's seal has been changed, as well as Yunika's. They have become intertwined possibly from the sword being used, where your seal now acts like a catalyst of sorts for both chakras and Yunika's has become a source of power to enhance it."

"In what way?" Naruto questioned. "Your old seal still works the same way; any excess chakra the Kyuubi releases would grow and be integrated into your own chakra helping along the growth process. But now the process has changed, the proof here lies in that purple chakra that has made a few appearances," The two pools touched and a dark purple emerged and grew into a new pool, larger, thicker-looking, and twisted.

"It wasn't often but when this chakra emerged it was wild and devastating, yet easily controlled. This brings the logic that the seal has now been altered to fuse the two chakras and their natures together into this corrupted form. From what we have seen this new chakra boasts two separate natures but only one in use at any given time; the first is a powerful lightning chakra nature, possibly amplified by the demonic attribute. This was seen in the few battles here in the prison." A small bubble was extracted from the dark pool and shifted form to show small jagged tendrils like lightning bolts shooting out.

"The second and more powerful of the two appears to be a high deterioration affinity; where virtually anything it comes in contact with disintegrates into nothing, most likely this one is demonic in origin. I saw this during the fight you had with the ghastly creatures from before and in a more concentrated form during the fight with Hidan." Another bubble split off and gave the appearance of it crumbling away.

Naruto stepped under the two chakra bubbles with his hands out and they hovered over his palms. His face changed to contemplation as he looked over the two, weighing their worth in battle and the problems they pose. "I never used lightning-style charka before and I certainly never even heard of a chakra with this kind of power. I figure the deteriorating one comes from the demonic combination but where does the lightning affinity come from? I don't think I have it myself."

Enra drop his hands and all liquid fell and splashed over everyone, even Mata who gave a comical show off shaking off the water and laughing as it landed two-fold on Naruto. Enra twirled his fingers around with a small remainder of darkened water in the forms of tiny bubbles. "Then if you are not sure, perhaps it may not be yours but instead it may be a slight possibility that it's a remnant of Yunika's." Naruto looked at Enra with a questioning gaze. "What's a remnant?"

"A remnant is something like me, was once lost to a bygone age. It is something last as outlasted the flow of time and is very rare to find. In your case it is a small fragment left over from a greater power." Enra grasped Naruto's hand and the boy felt something jolt his skin sending him flinching away. "Ouch! What was that about?" He griped and opened his hand slowly to see what Enra did, poking an eye through a slit he made. Inside he saw a small spark and when he opened his palm the spark danced over his skin.

Enra's voice sounded in Naruto's mind so he could make his next words private. "_This my boy, is the last spark of the humanity that once made up Yunika long ago. It is a small fragment, but within it lies something grand._" Enra thought this with a knowing and sad smile that Sasuke raised a brow at but left alone.

"_A spark of humanity?_" "_That's right. This was long before she entered this world, you'll never hear it from her but she was once a soft-hearted and kind person before she lost her memories of her past life and the one in our world. I only wish I could have found her Heart so I could fix all of this, but now that I have you I feel that, maybe, I still can._" Enra shed a mental tear for his old friend and the time he had with her.

Naruto, now staring at the spark with a look of determination, palmed it and thought it away. He brought his attention to Sasuke and to Enra's surprise, it was less filled with fury and more with a cold sense of motivation. "You say you want my help?" Sasuke didn't even have to do anything. "Fine, but I have two conditions, one is you telling me your side in all this, and I mean everything. You want my trust in this you divulge all your information about why you're here to us." He demanded.

"Done. And the second?"

Naruto stuck his hand out. "You help me find the sword, you can have it _after_ I find Goturo and run him through once I know where to find Yunika and I fix my problem. Deal?"

Sasuke knew deep down his old comrade wouldn't back down from this so with a grudging acceptance he took Naruto's hand and shook it.

"Deal."


	27. Through the Eyes of the Uchiha

**A/N:** Okay screw it, the last one took too long so let's see if we can't finish this one sooner eh? To point out a recent reviewer thor94, while it is my belief that every opinion is valid, often times we need to see the bigger picture of a plot to understand what happens. To Wolfish Imp, thanks for the once-over. More than often does a story need filler to lengthen any story; no one wants to read a two-page war event that doesn't make sense lol.

Through the Eyes of the Uchiha

(Some time ago, somewhere, with Sasuke)

The black-haired prodigy sat upon a stone bed, meditating on the events to come. Whispers of doubt and pride went through his mind like breaths of fleeting wind through the fields. He saw images of Itachi, his old days at the village, and Naruto….

_Naruto_….the very word brought him aggravation and a dark rage filled him like the black fills the void. Lightning crackled around his body, coursing along his skin loudly and angrily. The quick flashes of light threw instant shadows on the walls around him, vanishing in the same second. _That idiot, he doesn't know how lucky he is going through what he has. So much power…._he took a deep breath to calm his mind and quell his rage. _But so little control. _The lightning died down and faded away leaving Sasuke back in the dark.

A knocking on his door broke his concentration and from it Sasuke heard Kabuto's voice calling for him. "Oh Sasuke boy! I have your mission briefings." He slid a sealed envelope under the door and walked away. Sasuke picked it up off the ground and opened it, reading its contents. After ninety seconds of memorizing he lit the files on fire and destroyed them. _I only need to locate and acquire a blade? Sounds easier than having to commit messier jobs_. Sasuke didn't give it much thought as he prepared for the mission at hand and gathered his gear.

(Several days later)

His first place of rest was an abandoned house by a river. It wasn't much to look at; the roof had partly collapsed and the wall had holes in it. Still, it was better than nothing. After laying down some traps out of paranoia and checking the area within a thirty-meter radius for any sign of people, he lit a fire under the roof and waited.

He sat in a corner of the little house just on the edge of the fire's glow and snacking in a food ration. He kept an ear to the air picking out anything considered a threat. While he waited he pondered on the mission parameters; his job was to obtain a lost sword and gather information on this place called the Nine Hells for some reason the report didn't mention. There was a possibility that others would know about the weapon for any number of reasons; it would be best to simply make it a quick job and be done with it.

He finished with the ration and after wiping his hands off he double-checked his belongings, as his paranoia demanded it. A week's supply of food rations, vials containing medicine for various poisons and other ailments, his sword, two sealed scrolls for his use and a third wrapped in a band of iron he was given too by Orochimaru. He gave it a look and thought nothing more of it as instructed in the report.

_This little thing may be of some use to you later on. It was something I picked up some time ago and now I believe I have a use for it thanks to this opportunity. It has little meaning to me but it holds great value to a certain person. You are to handle this item with care and caution at all times._

"Great, I'm supposed to wait here for my next set of instructions." He repacked his belongings and tended to the fire. He prodded at the embers with a stick as he watched the flames crackle and pop. He listened quietly to the nightly sounds emerging from the shadows. Night owls, wolves and a few odd creatures here and there.

_It's quiet out here, so rarely do I get such times of peace. _He closed his eyes and laid back on the cold ground and just waited. And waited. The minutes ticked away in his mind, nearing an hour now. There he rested as still as stone for any sign of movement and his patience was rewarded. Bushes nearby rustled and a large white snake slithered its way to Sasuke. It was the size of his forearm and four times as long. It reached him silently and emptied the contents of its stomach; another scroll tightly wrapped in string.

Sasuke grabbed the scroll and read its contents and followed it word for word. A few odd ones, nothing too strange given his master's eccentric manner as of late….the last one did catch his eye and he was more than a little surprised at Orochimaru's last instruction. _And here I thought he couldn't get any weirder. _Nonetheless he memorized them and tossed the scroll into the fire as instructed.

He dug into his pack and removed one of the two scrolls and opened it revealing three summoning signs each with their own mark to signify what they brought forth: Snake, Bird, and Fish. Sasuke unsealed one that said "Snake" and out popped another scroll with writing utensils. He took these and wrote on the scroll, rolling it up upon completion and giving it to the snake. It devoured it and slithered away.

After it left he once again repacked his things and got ready for some shut-eye. He had a long way to go.

(Five days later)

Sasuke walked through a rocky plain with patches of destruction everywhere he looked. The place had the appearance of a small battlefield: any flora in sight was either burned away or broken completely. He inspected the remains of a small tree that was badly charred. There were remnants of the fire that had burned what remained of the bark, small blue sparks still glowing, burning on the wood.

_Blue fire….how unusual, and intriguing._ He touched it and the tree fell to pieces, the smallest of which crumbled to ash. He thought little more of it and moved on. Not long after he returned to his walk did he feel something strange around him, a feeling of displacement that shouldn't be there. He activated his Sharingan to see and found himself caught in some form of genjustu. He moved to dispel it and shortly after the world around him grew distorted and warped. Reality snapped back into place and Sasuke saw the world correctly again.

In the distance he saw a ruined structure that wasn't there before and decided to make for it. He walked towards it keeping on his guard. As he moved closer to the ruins he felt a sensation crawl up his spine that put him on edge. There wasn't anything around that he could sense, but something wasn't right…

He approached the ruins and gave it a quick once-over. It was ancient, and looked like it was ready to collapse. By some miracle it was still standing. Sasuke entered the ruins quietly, but instead of the usual run-around he used the front entrance, walking with a swagger he didn't normally carry and looking around with interest, giving off the impression of an everyday wanderer stumbling onto a new place. He pulled out a kunai and used it to chip away at a block and broke off a fragment. Returning the kunai, he picked up the fragment and tossed it up in the air. He sat down on the block and resumed tossing.

(Two hours later)

He continued to toss the stone piece repeatedly while he sat. He grew bored doing it but entertained himself by playing out scenarios in his head and thinking on new tactics. He passed the stone from his right to his left and back again when the stone caught aflame midair and landed on the ground. Sasuke looked down at the smoldering remains; what was once a small broken-off stone fragment was now a hot ember glowing blue, just like the burned trees.

"Why are you here?" A booming voice sounded throughout the room, making Sasuke snap to attention. "I asked you a question boy," The voice boomed louder and begun to shake the walls. "Why are you here?" It demanded. Sasuke brushed himself off and addressed the voice. "Who are you?"

Glowing balls of blue fire sprung up in the air around his casting shadows that danced beneath the ninja. "You are treading on sacred ground, intruding on land not to be soiled by the hands and hearts of the wicked. I will ask one last time and no more. Why. Are. You. Here." Clearly it was implied that the creature behind the voice was in no mood for jokes so Sasuke didn't bother. Lightning crackled in his hand and shot downward on the ground and sprinted for the walls in all directions. They raced up the sides and Sasuke watched for a response along the wide electric net he cast.

The voice started laughing at the obvious attempt. "A net to catch your prey? Don't waste your time. Simple tactics will have no effect." Sasuke hadn't finish with his play; he threw up a few smoke bombs that when exploded covered the entire inside of the ruins in a smokescreen. "Sorry to spoil your fun but small tactics are the only thing I need to bring you to me."

He reactivated his Sharingan and watched for movement in the black fog. Any small sign and his hand twitched at the ready with a red ball in his hand. Smoke swirled around him, everywhere he looked he saw blackness or pale stone, until…._there!_ He threw it up towards the ceiling and watched it go off upon contact. It released a gas that merged with the smoke and made contact with the lightning. The next second a small explosion broke through the smoke and blew it apart.

Parts of the ceiling collapsed and with it fell a creature Sasuke was unfamiliar with. It was like a cat but larger and it had two tails and it was, at the moment, groaning in pain. "That seemed a little overkill." Mata said with a paw nursing his head. Blood dripped from his mouth and from a cut on his head. He glared at the boy who intruded and now broke the ceiling of his home.

Sasuke stared down at the beast unfazed at the fact it could talk. "I want to speak with your master, the one that holds your leash." Sasuke said. "It's annoying enough that I had to put up with you for the sake of it, now I'm wasting time and energy on you because of what was your pride. It's for the best if you tell me where your master is. I have a schedule to keep to and I'm losing precious time."

Mata spat blood at Sasuke which just missed him by inches. Sasuke's face didn't change as he simply pulled out his sword sighing. Mata's eyes glanced over at the sharp blade being drawn. Sasuke struck a finger against the edge and checked its sharpness. "Or to put it a better way," In a flicker of motion the blade was a hair's breath away from Mata's eye. "I don't have time to waste on the likes of you. Speak or lose body parts, starting with those eyes of yours."

"That's enough." Sasuke looked up from his interrogation. An elderly woman with a knobby wooden cane stood amongst the rubble. She had quite the scowl on her face when she saw her servant on the ground nearing execution. "Is it really necessary to strike at an animal in such a fashion?" She asked pointing her stick at him.

Sasuke removed his sword from Mata's face and placed it across his shoulders. "No, not if you're the one I'm looking for." Mata glanced behind him at the old woman, "Please keep out of this Mistress. I can handle this myself." The woman snickered. "Of course you can child, but not this time." Her gaze fell upon this boy who had the gall to hurt one of her own. "Now if you would be so kind as to answer the question. It is only right," She pointed out the destruction around them. "Seeing as you've destroyed a part of my home."

Sasuke tapped his sword on his shoulder. "Are you Mistress Baba, Demon Witch?" She tapped the ground with her cane. "I am. What of it?" She calmly stated. Relieved that he finally finished with this part of his task he returned his blade to its sheath. "I was told to find you by my master, Lord Orochimaru. Due to a past involvement you had with my brother Itachi he declared you to be the best choice for this matter."

Baba went to Mata's side to check his wounds. There were a few bruises and some broken ribs, nothing too serious. "Worry not child, you'll heal in due time. As for you intruder boy, what would that snake want with me?" She asked. "I'm looking for information about a certain place, and I was told you were the person to see to about that. Am I wrong?"

Baba played with her cane, pondering how she should respond. She knew of Orochimaru; a nasty piece of work and untrustworthy. She knew anything she gave this boy would benefit him for some twisted end. "You aren't wrong but why should I help a servant of that snake man?" She said cautiously.

Sasuke's eye twitched at the word 'servant' but made no other movement. "I'm more of an apprentice, thank you." He stated irritably. Baba laughed, "I see you have your master's arrogance, and his irritable personality." He brushed off the comment and removed the iron banded scroll from his pack, holding it out to her. "I come with a trade, that is what you do isn't it? Information for information?"

Baba patted Mata's head and scratched behind his ears. "It is. But I work quid pro quo; if the information is of quality then we trade. If not then I'll have you be on your way." Sasuke sighed and rubbed his head, "What would a question be worth then? Worthy of your time I hope." Baba rolled her eyes at the child seeing as how this one wouldn't, or rather couldn't, offer more. "Very well boy, ask your question and I will answer. But first let me ask, what is on that scroll?"

"Orochimaru told me that there were some old secrets written down in this thing, but I don't know much more than that." Sasuke admitted. _This boy knows how to frustrate me, and the fact that he knows makes me nervous. _Baba mumbled about and finally gave in. She stuck out her hand. "The question?"

"I'm interested in a certain place, a prison called the Nine Hells. You have heard of it of course." Baba remained silent as she knew. Sasuke went on, "I'm looking to know just how old the place is, to the day. No more, no less. Sounds good right?"

_All he wants is to know the age of a prison? Seems fair enough._ "One-hundred-and-nineteen days, nearing one-hundred-and-twenty in a little over a month." Sasuke tossed the scroll over to her. "That's all I needed to know. And if you happen to be lying to me I will come back to get the truth out of you." He promised. He rushed out of the temple and made for the north with all speed.

Baba checked the weight of her new prize. "All that for a question? And all for a scroll?" She turned it over in her hands looking at the seal binding it. She hadn't seen anything like this one, it wasn't a blood seal nor was it tailored with a clan's symbolic works. After close inspection Baba saw it wasn't just one seal, there were many, written in multiple layers each one complex and grew increasingly so with each layer. It was brilliantly crafted; the seals were written in such a fashion that they would strengthen the next seal on top of it and so on.

_But for what? Someone went to great lengths to keep this whatever is inside from prying eyes such as mine, but these writings are so complex I can't even tell what kind of seal has been burned onto it. _The more Baba thought about it the more it stumped her. But at the end of her thought she smiled because she knew one thing: the more time and effort someone goes to locking something away, the greater its value must be. And so she tucked it away into her robes to study for later. Right now she had a cat to look after.

(Two days later)

Sasuke had found a run-down inn at a small haven to take refuge for a night. After a nasty meal and some nonsense rumors, he retreated to his room at twilight to think on the next set of orders he would receive. So far that snake of a master had sent him one set of strange instructions to the next, leading him all over the Land of Fire. No he was to wait here in what can barely be called a town for his next set.

Sasuke sat on his bed (more like a moth-eaten cot with three legs) and munched on an apple. _What is Orochimaru thinking sending me traveling around so much just for a sword? I've been at this for two weeks chasing nothing but rumors and following these ridiculous instructions. What's next?_

A knocking on his door followed by an envelope sliding under it caught his attention. He finished off the fruit and picked up the drop. _Great….might as well see what's next._ He opened it and read the papers inside. They only stated two objectives, both of which sounded cryptic. He rolled his eyes and burned them. _It would seem someone else is on the trail._ He grabbed his pack and pulled out his wallet and picked out a set amount of cash, removed it and set it in his pocket and returned the wallet.

He had one last thing to tend to before turning in for the night so he went to the nearby window, opened it and dropped into the growing shadows of the fading owl light. Taking the back alleys and dark places, he walked with and through the shadows that stretched along the ground and reached over rooftops so he could best be kept unseen. Sounds of drunken men singing off-key filled the air along with the stench of cheap alcohol and rotting fish.

He followed the sounds of drunken merriment being made while finding his way through the maze made by abandoned homes and the remains of them, the decaying wood decorated with splotches of blood and vomit and heaven knows what else. After a number of twists and turns he saw light coming from far in the maze emitting between two houses. Once he got through the sight and smell he emerged from the alley to find himself at a lively tavern hidden away from the rest of the town. The sounds of people laughing, yelling and objects smashing could be heard from outside and Sasuke could swear he could hear small explosions coming from its dwellings.

He stepped up to the front door and found it locked. He knocked and after a short pause a window in the door opened up and a shady-looking character staring. "What's the password?" The menacing pair of eyes stated.

"Is this the King's Den?"

Eyes rolled his eyes, "Yes, this is the King's Den. Now what's the damn password?"

Sasuke smiled. "Dead men tell no tales." Eyes narrowed his gaze at Sasuke. "That's not—" Sasuke cut down the door with his sword leaving only the viewing window intact. It revealed a shaking midget standing on a stool to look at him. He dropped the remaining door fragment and stuttered an apology, "C-c-come on in sir. W-we have t-t-t-the best drinks in t-town." Sasuke sheathed the blade and walked past the scared fool and entered the now suddenly quiet tavern.

As lively as it was mere moments ago it was now silent like the grave; Sasuke's entrance had quieted and captured everyone's attention in the place; several people who had been having a good time were now looking at the person intruding on their little party.

There were roughly two dozen people spaced throughout the establishment; some were dock workers (judging from the looks of their uniforms) gambling their pay away while others appeared to be more of a shadier nature, standing about, leaning against the walls; Sasuke could spot hidden blades they kept on them and nearby, possibly the tavern's security? Shameful. The Uchiha could point out at least six flaws in the place's security, the midget at the door being one of them. As he walked through the place to the bar he could feel their stares as they summed him up. Though they didn't speak Sasuke could hear the gears turning in their heads wondering who he was, though it wouldn't matter soon enough.

He approached the barkeep, a man with a single scar over his right eye cleaning a glass. He paid no attention to him as he sat down at the bar. Only when Sasuke sat down did the man look at him. "What's your poison?" He asked the standard question. "I'm not here to drink, I'm here for information regarding a certain person or persons involved." He took out the money he removed from his wallet earlier and laid it on the bar. "I'm looking for the best street rat you know of. Any thoughts?"

The man stared at the wad of cash. "Depends on your definition of the word best." Sasuke pushed the cash closer to the man. "One that can get the job done with no questions asked and can do it quietly. Nothing less." The man eyed it for a few seconds more and took it. "You're looking for a young woman, goes by the name Rat. Nothing special to look at but she gets around nicely. You can find her near the docks." He said and nothing more.

Sasuke pulled out two more bills, "For my nonexistence, and the door." He nodded and took it without a word. Sasuke left and as he did Eyes was kneeling by the entrance cowering in fear. He didn't even notice Sasuke had left until the barkeep told him to pick up the pieces, which startled him so much he jumped to a height not seen too often by midgets. Everyone in the tavern laughed their hardest that night.

(The docks, thirty minutes later)

Sasuke leaned against a post at the end of a dock staring out at the sea. He had been waiting for fifteen minutes and so far no sign of this Rat. It was a cold night and there were no stars out, only the moon's lonely light to keep him company. Not many people knew this about him but he always liked the moonlight. There was something about it that was settling, in the light and shadows cast by it. He breathed in the sea air, listened to the calm waters and enjoyed the peace.

"You waiting for me?"

Sasuke turned with hand on his sword and found himself face-to-face with a young woman standing on the post he was leaning against. She was coated in soot and ash like she was recently in a fire so it was hard to distinguish her features, save her filthy long hair and bright green eyes that pierced through the mess that was her hair, which reminded him of a tangle of rat tails. _Must be one of the reasons she's called Rat. I didn't even sense her come near me._

"It depends, are you Rat?" He asked. She nodded and picked at a dirty strand of her hair. "In that case I need you to make a run for me, nothing too difficult. I need you to pick out a simple lowlife you might know of in town and have him mug someone that will be coming here soon, so I'm told. Pay him and give him a message to give the person they mug, I'll add his cash to your payment so you can give it to him." He explained and took out a rather large roll of money.

Rat stopped playing with the strand when she saw the payment. "And you aren't worried me just taking that and scurrying off with it?" She said. Rat could feel her fingers growing twitchy. "I don't have time for trust issues right now, and besides I asked for the best so I have a feeling you would stake your reputation on it. If you aren't, or if you play foul, I'll simply find and kill you."

"Ah but didn't you say you didn't have time for trust issues? Which would mean you have no other choice but to use what you have on hand. Isn't that right?" Rat's voice was playfully mocking. Sasuke thought nothing of it and held out the money. "Well, do you want the job or not?" He asked.

Rat sighed and took the payment in her dirty hand. "Don't expect a refund if I fail." She told him. "It's a simple task. I don't expect any more of you than what I have asked. Now get to it." He replied. With that she leapt off the post and ran off into the night. _Finally I can go and get some rest. _He thought and shuddered at the image of him sleeping on that "bed".

(Morning, on the open sea)

Sasuke was on a boat out to the sword's location: the Light Country. A small island country that grew quite infamous over the last few years due to a large prison for capturing and incarcerating high ranking corrupted officials and criminals. Word had reached to Orochimaru through various contacts that this was the place where the sword was seen last.

After he woke up that morning he tried to find a boat that would take him out to the island but had found it troublesome due to the fact not many non-official boats make routes there. So he (and bribed) on such boatman to take him as far as the edge of the island and no further. He didn't mind it; as long as he could get to the place quickly he didn't care how he got there. After a short nap and some meditation, the journey went by quickly as he found himself in the island's shadow cast by the setting sun, thanks to calm seas and a tailwind he made it to the island half-a-day early.

Upon his landing he waved off the boat and made his way further inland. On his way he passed by a number of small patrols and traps meant to keep people out. It didn't come as a surprise; he expected more in all honesty from an island that held prisoners. It didn't take him long to reach the main river that connected the ocean to the lake surrounding the prison and quietly made his way to the lake using the growing shadows of twilight.

He neared the edge of the lake thinking on what he was going to do for his next move. At the moment he couldn't get close to the prison without drawing attention. He didn't have a boat; it wouldn't matter since he couldn't use the front. He didn't have enough information about the prison itself to find an alternative means of entry. Having only just arrived on the island the safest route to take here would be to gather intelligence and find a quiet way past its walls and into the dark depths of the Nine Hells. And so he circled the lake, looking for any advantages he could find, any weaknesses in the land or the prison walls he could exploit. And he waited for an opportunity.

(Later that night)

He had found refuge between an abandoned building and some debris and had a small fire going to keep the cold of night at bay when he heard it: the sound of his ship coming in. Or to be more precise, a ship's horn. He moved from his temporary camp to see a ship moving on the river into the lake. Two more horn blares and shortly after a spotlight was on it from the center of the lake. That's when Sasuke got a good look at the prison.

Calling it huge was an understatement; the boat coming in was a good size and the spotlight lighting it up covered the entire ship plus a good five meters. Sasuke heard a loud noise from the prison walls and lit by the glow of the spotlight he saw a section of the wall move and lower itself on the water. _It has its own dock as well. Fine and effective._

It would be at the makeshift dock in minutes so he decided to try using this as a first attempt. He bit his thumb to draw blood and ran through hand signs. Slamming his hand on the ground and after an explosion of white smoke he summoned a large snake. "I have a plan for you…"

(Five minutes later)

On the boat there were a small number of people coming in the prison and some guards watching over them. The spotlight turned onto the boat and the man at the helm put a hand to his face to shield his eyes from the light. He used the ship's horn to signal their docking once he saw the dock. He pushed the throttle and the ship lurched forward against the growing waves.

None of the guards liked crossing these waters as of late, their boss had supposedly added new defenses to the facility, and one of them was placed in the water. When one of the guards had asked what it was Goturo had him thrown into the lake and the poor soul didn't resurface. So the driver of the boat tonight wanted to move across the water as fast as possible.

As he sped over the water and broke the waves he felt that it was rougher than it should have been. It was a clear sky tonight and last he knew there wasn't a storm anywhere nearby. Another rough ride over another wave made the helmsman look over the side and watch the waters below him. He didn't see anything to be wary off; the water was rough but nothing noteworthy. He stared at it for a little bit and went back to it when something caught his eye: a dark shadow beneath the waves moving slowly, creeping underneath the ship. The man rubbed his eyes and shook his head at the sight and checked again. There was nothing there. He mumbled something about not drinking before casting out and returned to his post.

The ship was rocked by an explosion created by the sudden emergence of something from the deep. A pillar of water shot out of the sea followed by a white snake that appeared, looming over the ship and its crew. The helmsman grew wide-eyed and screamed alerting everyone. "Man your posts! We're under attack!"

The serpent continued to fly up and over the ship back into the water. With a flick of its tail at the last second it struck the side and sent it rocking violently threatening to capsize it. The force threw some guards overboard, not including the helmsman who fought to keep the ship from going under. "Keep your wits about you and keep your eyes on that blasted shadow in the water! If the ship goes down we risk losing the captives!"

Then the waters stirred drastically around the ship. It groaned against the currents and threw everyone into disarray. The snake surfaced and reared its head over the bow fangs bared. "What the hell is happening!?" Someone screamed. A deep rumble from the depths made the snake stop and turn to the water. A huge shadow behind the snake appeared and the rumble grew louder. Suddenly the serpent hissed and resisted as _something_ tried to pull it underwater.

It put up quite the struggle, throwing its body down at whatever was trying to bring it down. It dove into the water and resurfaced again and again, its cries filled the air. Only once did its thrashing get near the ship and in that moment the helmsman saw a gigantic claw wrap around the snake's body and drag it all the way down. Just before it went under the snake's head slammed on the side of the boat with such force it leaned to the side, tossing some of its people into the water as it did. While guards and captives swam chaotically in the aftermath of the two beasts trying to reach the boat, one person was making their way towards the prison dock.

Sasuke swam under the waves using the mayhem caused by the fight. _I knew it would cause a ruckus but I didn't expect something else to be in the lake. What mad man lets a monster roam free in a lake used for trafficking? _He reached the dock and pulled himself out of the water without so much as a sound under all the screaming and alarms. _Now to grab a guard's uniform and blend in, until I gather more information and new orders._ And with that he silently ran through the darkness and disappeared.

(Present time)

"And after that I remained hidden as best as I could, keeping an eye out for any new developments. Such as the mayhem that was caused by your actions upon reaching the island and your capture. Beyond that I've been playing hide-and-seek with the guards for the last month trying to get more information on what's going on here and why."

Sasuke had finished telling his side of events with Naruto and Enra still inside the mindscape. While he spoke to Naruto Enra was tampering with something off in a corner while Mata watched over him with curious eyes. He was mumbling under his breath so quietly the cat had a hard time hearing him.

"How did you manage to last this long in a place like this? You would need food, water, and other basic stuff." Naruto said. "I was forced to raid the guards' quarters whenever I needed things like that. Fortunately they don't keep _everything_ under constant guard. If they did they might have found me in a week or so." Sasuke admitted.

"I'm sorry I'll have to cut this talk short but if you boys are done going down memory lane," Enra called from his corner. Sasuke looked past Naruto to see the smoke demon holding something up in his hands. "Youngling, I have something in mind for you that should come in handy very soon." Looking back at the boys he had a sly grin that told the blonde something was up. He walked over to see and Enra gave it to him. "Is this what I think it is?" Naruto asked stupefied. "It is, it's been cooking for quite a while and with you being out for a month I figured it might be ready."

"You, Uchiha is it?" Enra pointed to Sasuke. If you're going to be working with us from here on out I'm going to warn you right now, if your mind isn't ready for what happens next," He chuckled at his subtle joke. "You will be left behind when things get heavy out on the battlefield because starting now, and pardoning the humor, things are going to get demonic."

**A/N: **And here we are!

I apologize for the length of time, the only excuse I have is Dragon Age and Destiny coming out. I've been playing that shit almost nonstop on my free time when I'm not undergoing research or working/writing. And I want to give a shout to mitchc77, you know who you are and you're welcome. R&R!


	28. Can't Touch This

**A/N:**

Can't Touch This

(In the real world)

Sasuke broke off the justu and released Naruto from his comatose state. He backed away from him and let him stretch his limbs. "So exactly which one am I talking to right now?" Sasuke inquired. "It's your old buddy from the Leaf this time." Naruto craned his neck until he felt it crack. "Enra is still tired from all the fighting from earlier. Can't you tell the difference?" Naruto laughed resulting in a swat upside his head from Mata. "You asked for that one boy." Mata said.

Naruto glared at him and the cat waved it off with his tail. "We have more important things to take care of. We don't have time to play around now." Sasuke was checking his sword for any damage. "The cat's right. We, being you, are two levels above your cage and have taken out a number of the prison's defenses, one of them being Hidan. Along with breaking into the vault and releasing…" He paused to look at Cora. "_That_, you are pretty much on everyone's shit list." Cora glared at him and Mata walked over to her and patted her head with a paw.

Naruto jabbed a finger at the Uchiha. "Don't do that. Look down at her. She's a prisoner as much as I was, with no voice or memory." "Have you looked around? You're still a prisoner. You haven't gotten out yet." Sasuke argued. Naruto scoffed, "You know I have more than enough power to break my way through this place and up to the surface." "By yourself maybe, but not with your current party you couldn't!" Sasuke kept on. "You still need to find the others that came to rescue you because I know how you are."

"That's enough from the both of you!" Mata howled at them. The two boys looked at the cat astonished. "In this place you have choices to make that will affect your sense of morality. You want to find your friends? Then first you need to stop your bickering and get ready to deal with what happens next." Mata scolded them. Sasuke thought it was cute from where he stood, a talking cat was talking down at him from knee height.

"What do you mean choices? We need to find the others first before we can leave. More strength in numbers I say." Naruto told him proudly. Cora rubbed the cat's head stopping him for a moment as he purred in delight. "You may want to save the others but you may not get the chance with some of them. In times of war there are always casualties, in a place like this there is no difference. Guards are going to come for you both now that you've caused this much of a ruckus. Guards and possibly more of those creatures we tackled before."

Naruto ruffled his hair and groaned, "Great, just what I need. More zombies." He played with his hair toying with the length. "Man I'm never gonna get used to this." This surprised Mata so much that he didn't pay attention to Cora's hand anymore. "You….aren't worried for your friend's lives?" Naruto picked at a strand that bugged him for some reason. "Nope, because now I have Sasuke here to help me." He smiled that big idiot smile Sasuke hated when they were younger.

"Whatever, can we just—" Sasuke started and then he heard something of in the distance. He put a finger to his lips and waved for everyone to move further away from the wall and into the open darkness. From a ways away they could see a small growing light source slowing coming out of what was believed to be a passageway, the distance made it hard to tell. It rounded the corner and appeared in the open as a lantern. In its glow walked two guardsmen talking to each other.

"I swear Dom I heard something down here. It sounded like actual voices, not like those things the warden has all over the lower levels." One said. The guy with the lantern pinched the bridge of his nose. "Loki, this hasn't been the first time you've cried wolf and nothing was going on. Its time you were able to go this far down by yourself. We don't have anything to fear from these things, we've had them for weeks and nothing has happened to any of the guards. He replied.

A buzzing sound followed by words interrupted their conversation. _"Hey boys, you find anything on level seven?"_ Dom clicked the radio around his neck. "Nothing so far. Any word on the level nine break out?" Another buzz. _"Nah. We sent an elevator down with a few guys earlier but there wasn't anyone down there. Lots of damage to the Hell Gate but the vault and Goturo's office hasn't been touched. We've pulled them all back to search the upper levels; so far there has been no sign."_

"Good to know I guess. We'll raise you if we find anything." Dom clicked it off and shook his head. "Find anything. Bah. We haven't run into anything since we were sent down here. Can you believe it? We could have gotten surface duty, patrolling the edges of the island where barely nothing happens. Instead the bastard that trashed the whole island has everyone on red alert and we've been stuck with this patrol for weeks!" He searched the open area away from the wall setting the darkness aglow. "We haven't found anything yet and I doubt we'll find anything—"

"Down here?" The light fell on Naruto's group and startled the two guards. Naruto snapped his fingers and Mata summoned up more fireballs. "Now, I'd say don't scream but nine times out of ten you guys do it anyway." And just like that they screamed bloody murder. Naruto rushed them and grabbed both by their throats cutting their cries short. A quick squeeze and their radios were broken. "We don't want anyone interrupting our little talk. Seeing as how I've been asleep for two fortnights, I am understandably out of the loop so I have some questions for you gentlemen. If you could be so kind as to answer them without fuss we will be on our way." He kindly explained.

The guards struggled frantically as to be expected. Naruto groaned and thought about knocking their heads together, then he second guessed himself and dropped it. "Ah we don't have time for this." He looked back at Sasuke in the blue light. "Could you make them docile please?" Sasuke activated his Sharingan and after a few seconds of getting eye to eye with them they stopped flailing about.

"Will they talk? Can they still talk?" He asked the Uchiha. He nodded in reply and Naruto began his interrogation. "What are your orders?" Dom stared off in nothingness while he answered. "Our jobs were to watch over the island and report any sign of unknown activity to the higher-ups. We would continue this routine until instructed otherwise." He said stoically.

Naruto tilted his head from side to side in thought. "You had a change of instructions regarding the assault of the island. Did those orders have anything to do with the chaos caused here on the island?" "We had a change on the patrols; all available troops were sent to assess the situation and assist wherever possible. Our next charge was to capture and contain the intruder for questioning."

"What kind of questions? Why even bother risking people's lives to capture me?" Naruto demanded. Loki tiled his head and his helmet slid to one side of his face. "Goturo instructed us to capture and contain the intruder for questioning. He didn't tell us why." He dully replied. _Low on the totem pole. Shit._

"I don't think we'll be getting any more out of them." Naruto dropped the two and was about to ask Sasuke to drop the justu but instead Sasuke reached past Naruto and grabbed Loki's head. "What information do you have on this sword Goturo has in his possession?" Loki's head rolling around for a few seconds and stated, "What sword?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he stared at the guard for a moment. Then he stopped and knocked them out. "It would seem that these two truly don't know about the sword we're after. It's best to assume that none of the other guards know about it either. It makes sense to want to keep something that powerful under wraps." He said.

"Well then, what do you think our next move should be?" Naruto asked. "For you and your _friends_, you'll need nourishment." Sasuke said. He looked at Naruto's stomach. "You've been asleep for an entire month, I'm surprised you of all people haven't had the need to feed yet what with your appetite being the most ravenous of this group."

"Now that I think about it I haven't been hungry at all since I woke up." Naruto said rubbing his stomach. "Your body will still need nutrients before you go any further. I know where a small cache the guards use for supplies; it's where I've been getting all of my food and water for the last month. You can get what you need from there and we can move on to the next part." Sasuke took the lantern the guard was carrying and checked its fuel. Content with what he had he took the lead of their group.

First going back the way the guards came Sasuke kept an eye on the walls, feeling them as he went. He paused at a corner and double-checked the wall, at every corner. He would tap every other brick every five to ten feet with a kept ear to the stone. Naruto waited for something to happen but he lacked the Uchiha's patience. "What are you doing all that for?" He asked.

Sasuke paused in his knocking to answer so as not to break his concentration. "Hidden throughout this place are secret passages on every level the guards use to get around easier. A lot of them also lead to food stores we can use. It's also how I've gotten around and stayed hidden for so long. Unfortunately not all of them are connected to the upper and lower floors." And he resumed the tapping. Sasuke did this for several minutes over a series of pathways, until…

"Jackpot." He struck a spot on the wall twice and his reward for his efforts was an echoing sound that shouldn't have come from solid rock. He felt up the section carefully touching every brick that had been laid down. He applied pressure to one of these and felt it slid into place, followed by a rumbling sound and the section moved into the wall revealing a small room. "It didn't take as long as I thought it would; the guards have something they use to find them much quicker, probably a light that shows a mark on the wall or the like." Sasuke explained.

Everyone entered the room and Sasuke pulled on a lever next to the opening that shut the entrance. "No point in leaving it open for the guards to find us. Help yourself to whatever food you find and we can move on from here." He said. Naruto's gaze scoured the room, it was filled with shelves stocked with canned goods and bottled water. He took out a kunai and picked a can at random and cut through the top and in one swift motion emptied the can's contents down his throat. A few seconds and a messy belch later he wiped his mouth. "Bacon and beans…not bad. I guess I was hungry." He laughed and grabbed another one. After popping the top he tossed it over to Cora. "Best to eat up, you never know when you'll get your next chance." He said and picked out a water bottle.

She nodded her head in thanks and started chowing down on the food using her hands. While she ate Naruto was on his fifth can (fruit salad) when he asked Sasuke, "Well now that we can scratch this off, where should we go from here?" He wiped off a drip of juice from his chin. "Didn't you have a plan when you broke out?" Sasuke asked though he knew he didn't need to. "I knew I had to find everyone first but I didn't know where to start. I still don't know where anyone is in here. I've mostly been going on instinct."

"So you have no idea what you are doing? No surprise there." Sasuke opened a water bottle and drank from it. "You're lucky to have me right now you know that? I might know where one or two of them are at the moment." He said which surprised Naruto so much he almost choked on his food. "And you didn't tell me this why!?" He shouted. "Once again, because I know how you act impulsively. If I told you before any preparations were done you would have flown off the handle and ran straight towards everyone. You need to stop and think every once on a while." Sasuke scolded him.

Naruto grunted since he didn't have anything to say to him. Sasuke was right; he would have gone right after them without a second's hesitation but he didn't know where to start. "Fine we'll do this your way. Who do we find first?" He asked now very annoyed with Sasuke.

Sasuke dropped the water bottle. "Logic says we start with the strongest one that's closest to our position. If we're lucky they won't have moved him." "Him? Which one? Shikamaru? Lee?" Sasuke tossed something at Naruto who caught it. In his hand he held a key. "That key leads to the cell belonging to Kakashi, if you can believe your luck."

_Kakashi-sensei! With him back we can find the others in no time._ Naruto pocketed the key and downed the bottle in his hand. "Well then, let's go find him. You lead us to him and I'll break him out." Naruto trembled with excitement at the thought of reuniting with his friends but Sasuke wasn't feeling the same. "If we can find him. They moved the prisoners around every now and then, I haven't figured out why just yet." He said.

"Whatever I say we go find him, it can't be that hard can it?" Naruto asked. "Excuse me?" Mata coughed for attention. "I'm sorry to say it can be that hard because it is that hard. That is to say, this place is quite spacious, and it would take far too much time to check all of it. We need to know exactly where and when he is if we are to reclaim your friend." He pointed out.

"And I don't know where he is right at this second. I only know where his last location is and that information is good up to two days ago. It's best if we find him as soon as possible." Sasuke picked up what was left of the used supplies and found a trash can to toss them all in. Naruto took care of the rest and made to open the door. "Well then let's go find him!" He hollered and opened the door and revealed a surprised guard on the other side.

The look on the poor fool was that of such surprise he barely had time to mutter a word before Naruto grabbed him and drew his fist back. "Wait! He could be useful." `Naruto held off on the punishment and picked up the man by his collar. "You're thinking he might be able to lead us to Kakashi?" Naruto figured. The guard shook out of fear and Naruto's grip tightened. "Go on, keep squirming. It only gets worse for you." He threatened.

The scared man groaned out of fear and disbelief. "You have got to be kidding me, I get back on duty for an hour and I'm the one who runs into the escapees. Please just don't hurt me." He squeaked. Naruto growled at the man. "Or e-e-eat me Mr. Devil sir." He stuttered. _Talk about bad luck._

"Sasuke, if you would?" Sasuke activated his Sharingan and stared at the man. "Please wait…." He started and his face slowly grew sleepy. He groaned and drooled and then he collapsed. Naruto lifted him higher, "Uh, he isn't dead is he?" He checked by shaking the body a bit. "Brain-dead maybe. I grabbed the information out of his head. What I did is similar to what the Yamanaka clan does but it's less…kind to the victim. He'll live, probably." Sasuke told Naruto and dropped him to the floor.

"Let's go, guards never go anywhere alone. More will be on the way," Sasuke opened the door and moved darted through the hallway quickly followed by Naruto, Mata, and Cora who was finishing wolfing down a can of beans. "The last thing we need is to run into any—" He stopped when at the end of the hall he was met with a small patrol. "More." _Damn it._ He thought and Naruto stopped behind him.

One of the guardsmen drew a look of recognition when he saw Naruto. He jabbed a finger pointed at him, "It's you! You're the man from the outer ring who took out my patrol a month ago!" "A friend of yours?" Sasuke whispered to Naruto. "Not really, like he said I attacked his group when I first got here but it was Enra controlling my body." He whispered back.

"Go and sound the alarm! We have a prison break!" He screamed out and ran in the other direction. "Mata!" Naruto called and the cat rushed after the guardsman. "I'm sorry people but I can't let you get in the way." Naruto's eyes glowed as he exerted chakra forcefully causing the room to shake. The group backed off a few steps at the feeling of his chakra in the air. "The whole area is shaking, just like earlier. It was all his doing!" One of them cried.

"Naruto…" Sasuke warned as he stepped back as well. "I know what I'm doing." He concentrated the chakra like Yunika taught him. He flexed his hand and felt the chakra flowing in it. _Focus and breathe…_his power covered his hand like a glowing glove. "I'm getting out of here and I'm taking my friends with me whether you like it or not!" Flexing his palm towards the patrol he blasted them off their feet with a wave of chakra.

After they fell he made his chakra rise up and take the shape of something he remembered Enra doing. He made it take the form of Enra's massive shadow. "Now, stay down or get out of my way. Either one doesn't make a difference to me." They were speechless out of fear and awe like most common men are. Even Sasuke was a little impressed and openly admitted it. "Nice trick. Where did you learn that?" The shaking died down and the chakra form disappeared. "I picked it up from Enra while he fought Hidan."

"Right, Hidan…there's something we need to discuss later, once we have the others with us." Sasuke said. Naruto was going to ask what he meant when they heard Mata return with the last guard now unconscious in his teeth, carried by the man's collar. He spat him out and cleaned the surface of his tongue with his paw, complaining about the taste. "Don't worry, I got him before he could get far."

Just as he said it a siren had begun wailing throughout the prison. "I thought you said you stopped him from raising the alarm!" Naruto shouted over the noise. "I said I stopped him from getting too far. He wasn't anywhere near an alarm switch." Sasuke checked the man's neck and removed the radio he had. Putting the earbud in his ear he tested an idea. His results were rewarded. "There's chatter over his radio; he must have warned anyone that was near the alarms to trigger them." Sasuke gave the radio to Naruto. "All available hands will be after us now. So tapping into their communications is a good idea."

Without a word he put it on and tweaked with the signal. "Shouldn't you have one?" He knew Sasuke would get the most use out of one. "I had one but it was damaged shortly before I found you; I haven't gotten the chance to get a new one until today." He salvaged another radio from a fallen guard and equipped it.

"Match your frequency to mine and keep it private, don't talk on open channels and for the love of Kami stay out of sight. I'm going to check the cells on this level to see if my info is still good." Sasuke ran off in the opposite direction. "What should I do?" Naruto hollered after him. "What you do best: make some noise!" He shouted back and disappeared.

"_Sounds like me. Enra can we do anything about what might be coming? Without killing anyone please."_ The last thing he wanted was another body count of innocents. _"If they send the cannon fodder dispatching them will be easy. If it's anything like that Hidan character, we will have a problem."_ Enra was still recovering and more fighting would only slow the process. He needed to find a place hidden away from prying eyes where he can finally get some rest.

Mata's ears were acting like crazy radar dishes shifting at all the sounds going off. "We don't have time to stand around and wait for the guards to find us again. What's the next move?" Cora tugged at Naruto's coat with a concerned look on her silent face. Naruto wracked his brain for a quick way out until he could find a place to recover.

An idea came to mind and he mentioned it to Enra. _"Could you do your smoky-smoky trick to get us to safety?"_ _"That technique isn't meant to work like that; its best used for combat. However I can think of a better way to use it." _The sounds of footsteps were getting closer. _"Then do it, and make it fast."_ He ordered. Power shifted and Enra was back in control swiftly making hand signs as the first guard ran into his vision. He stretched out his arms and smoke bellowed out in a mass rush. "**Demon Sage Art: Grand Smoke Mirage**."

Ridiculous amounts of smoke erupted from his body like an explosion swallowing everyone and everything in the thick cloud. The first man to witness the rush of the dark cloud had gotten blown off his feet from the force of the outburst and everyone following him was blinded. Under the cover of the justu Enra grabbed Mata and Cora and rode up the wall over the growing crowd and out of sight. People couching and hacking from the sudden inhaling of smoke and questions rising from the crowd gave Enra a smile as he vanished in the darkness.

(Ten minutes later)

Enra found an empty spot void of sound and life and dropped his payload and both of them fell on their bottoms, _hard._ "Now was that really necessary?" Mata said sitting up and rubbing his now sore rump. "Maybe not but it brought a smile to my face." Enra's smoky chuckled but retained his serious demeanor. "We need to find the others ASAP. Mata, you stay with Cora and search together. I'll check everywhere else."

His vaporous body exploded again and stretched outward, multiple tendrils with eyes on them watching, searching. Mata shivered as he watched Enra do his thing. "Its effective, but that will always creep me out." He muttered and poked Cora with his tail to get her going and breathed a few fireballs to help them see.

Both parties checked as much of the level as they could, though with the sounds of the alarms continuing and people hunting for them, it makes searching quite difficult. One of Enra's tendril's reached a hallway and paused. A group of guards ran past him not even seeing the thin cloud with eyes watching their every step. _These men can be quite ignorant in a frenzy._ He thought dryly. Once they moved, he silently went his merry way.

After searching in the dark for several minutes he found more cells, small and close together like the ones he saw before. _Let's see who they have hidden away here._ Slithering on the ground he eyed the insides of the cells carefully and quietly, only to find them void of life; either empty or they still had remains of their previous guests. He entered the cell through the viewing slot on the door and got closer to the corpses. Most of the body was decayed but there was still bits and pieces attached to the bones.

_It's the same here as it was on the earlier floors. Strange that no one has come to clean out these cells for their new occupants. _He phased through the bones and moved on to the other cells. Five steel-clad rooms later he found them all to be the same. It didn't make sense to him, naturally when prisoners expired, the ruling authority would send out others lower on the totem pole to clean them. _Clean them….clean….cleaners…_He thought for five seconds and it clicked. _The jikininki! They use them to clean out the cells due to their diet of flesh. And the youngling killed off a _lot_ of them._

After leaving the cell and the smell it give off, he heard a noise like clinking chains. His eyes searched the darkness for whatever made the sound. It was quiet so he didn't quite hear it well. Then he heard it again and he zoomed in on its source which was harder than you'd think when sound can bounce around. He found one cell that had the exact same door that held Itachi and the sound seemed to be coming from inside.

Mata and Cora were checking out other various cells when a smoky length of Enra waft over them spelling out the words "I found something," in the air and floated away. Cora patted Mata on the head and followed the cloud. He grumbled under his breath and ran after her.

They all met up at the door and Enra pulled himself together (no pun intended) and peered inside. This one was different to the one Itachi was imprisoned in, it was dimly lit with a single shaded lantern hanging above the person so he could see in this one and it held a thin young man with long black hair falling over his face. He was bound in a similar fashion as well; eight chains, four on each arm and each one in a different position forcing him to cross his arms.

This one had the same attire as Itachi and the same metal mask. "It would seem one of your friends is inside. Which one do you think?" Enra muttered. Naruto stirred from his mental rest to see as he remained in his mindscape to recover his chakra. _"It looks like Shikamaru! Let's get it open."_

"Hang on youngling, I need to burn open the door." As the words passed his lips his makeshift torch was back and he was working on the door's welded edges. A hundred and thirty seconds later the great sound of heavy metal slamming on the ground filled everyone's ears. "Next time, couldn't you just grab it before it hits the ground?" Mata had his paws over his ears to block out the noise. "And miss out on watching you flinch? Not a chance." Enra chuckled.

He walked inside with a wary eye on everything in the room, being watchful of any traps or seals. "So far it's quiet. Mata do your cat eyes see anything?" Enra focused his attention on Shikamaru in the middle of the room. Mata took a step in and scanned the room, his vision unclouded. He saw a few seals on the spots where the chains attached to the wall. "There are some seals on the wall that look like they could be triggered by the chains and," He paused and eyes grew big as they landed on a large seal on the ground. "Another one at the center, large, very large. I don't know if it's suppressing him or if it's booby-trapped, just be careful."

Enra gave a glance over his shoulder, "My, is that actual concern I hear coming from you? I'm touched." Mata's face drooped out of disbelief. "I take it back. You can burn in holy fire." Enra smiled and stooped down to analyze the ground. There wasn't any sign of sealing justu visible to the naked eye. His hand rubbed the floor looking for some marking or indentation or rises in the floor. He found nothing.

_I don't sense any hostility coming from here and Mata can't tell if they are real traps or not. Whatever they are, must be under the floor, beneath the metal. _After wiping the dust off his hands he got up and advanced slowly. "Alright then, time for a little more fun." He rapped his knuckles on the mask startling Shikamaru. Poor man nearly jumped out of his chains, if he could that is. His head shot up and he made an attempt to move around, obviously hindered by the chains.

Enra tapped the mask again and moved to take it off. He reached to the back of the young man's head to find the clasp—and his hands slipped right through it. Enra blinked in a short-lived stupor as he tried again. He watched his hands as they slowly passed through the faceplate of the mask and continued on to exit the back of Shikamaru's head. Icing on the cake, he wiggled his fingers while they were still in Shikamaru's head. "Well now, that's new."

**A/N: **And here we are! One more chapter under my belt and one more under the bridge for us all! Please R&R!


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